GLPH 171 – Module 2: Environmental Determinants of Health
– Complete Notes and Key Concepts
• How do we know this to be true?
• Are there other ways to understand this?
• Whose knowledge is this?
• How do I judge the quality of the evidence in support of this knowledge? - ANS ✔4 questions
to ask when consuming information to be a critical scholar
how the researchers define health and what type of health data they are using - ANS ✔what
must we consider when studying health
• What definition are the authors using for health?
• Are they considering a broad or narrow definition of health?
• Is their definition grounded in a particular cultural understanding? - ANS ✔when reading
about health you should ask what 3 questions in relation to definitions of health?
only about the length of a person's life and not the quality of the life that the person is able to
live - ANS ✔why is life expectancy at birth a narrow view of health
easily comparable across geographies - ANS ✔why is life expectancy a commonly used statistic
health development - ANS ✔The level of development within a healthcare system in a country,
and the overall level of development in a country such as in the labour market, democratic
governance, social services derived from a tax base, etc.
varying levels of health development - ANS ✔cause of disparities in life expectancy by region
,assumption: vital statistics are recorded everwhere
incorrect because: in some parts of the world such as in South Asia or sub-Saharan Africa, only
about a quarter of children in the poorest quintile families (i.e., children who are in the 20%
poorest families) have their birth registered. Even some of the children in the richest quintile of
these regions are also not registered. This likely means death records are also not entirely
accurate. As a result, the understanding of health when using mortality statistics will be
somewhat flawed. - ANS ✔key assumption made when measuring health data. why is this
assumption incorrect?
Quantitative - ANS ✔Process of collecting and analyzing data that is mainly expressed as
numbers.
This type of research consists of close-ended questions and allows you to test hypotheses.
Sources of health data include:
• Vital statistics
• Surveys
• Administrative health records
qualitative research - ANS ✔process of collecting and analyzing data that is mainly expressed as
words or images.
This type of research consists of open-ended questions and enables you to explore ideas in-
depth.
Sources of data include:
• Interviews
• Focus groups
, • Community-based participatory studies
critical appraisal - ANS ✔process of carefully and systematically assessing the outcome of
scientific research (evidence) to judge its trustworthiness, value, and relevance in a particular
context.
1. Is the evidence from a known, reputable source?
2. Has the evidence been evaluated in any way? If so, how and by whom?
3. How up-to-date is the evidence?
4. How were things measured and were these methods appropriate and trustworthy?
5. Are the findings generalizable (broadly relevant) beyond the original context the evidence
was collected in?
6. Is this knowledge biased in some way? If so, how, how much, and what does this mean for
your interpretation or use of it? - ANS ✔6 questions to ask in order to critically appraise any
scientific finding
geography
natural environment
build environment
food systems
macro-environmental factors - ANS ✔five features of the physical environment
geography - ANS ✔(part of physical environment)
global location, country, region within a country, and urban/rural location
natural environment - ANS ✔(part of physical environment)
– Complete Notes and Key Concepts
• How do we know this to be true?
• Are there other ways to understand this?
• Whose knowledge is this?
• How do I judge the quality of the evidence in support of this knowledge? - ANS ✔4 questions
to ask when consuming information to be a critical scholar
how the researchers define health and what type of health data they are using - ANS ✔what
must we consider when studying health
• What definition are the authors using for health?
• Are they considering a broad or narrow definition of health?
• Is their definition grounded in a particular cultural understanding? - ANS ✔when reading
about health you should ask what 3 questions in relation to definitions of health?
only about the length of a person's life and not the quality of the life that the person is able to
live - ANS ✔why is life expectancy at birth a narrow view of health
easily comparable across geographies - ANS ✔why is life expectancy a commonly used statistic
health development - ANS ✔The level of development within a healthcare system in a country,
and the overall level of development in a country such as in the labour market, democratic
governance, social services derived from a tax base, etc.
varying levels of health development - ANS ✔cause of disparities in life expectancy by region
,assumption: vital statistics are recorded everwhere
incorrect because: in some parts of the world such as in South Asia or sub-Saharan Africa, only
about a quarter of children in the poorest quintile families (i.e., children who are in the 20%
poorest families) have their birth registered. Even some of the children in the richest quintile of
these regions are also not registered. This likely means death records are also not entirely
accurate. As a result, the understanding of health when using mortality statistics will be
somewhat flawed. - ANS ✔key assumption made when measuring health data. why is this
assumption incorrect?
Quantitative - ANS ✔Process of collecting and analyzing data that is mainly expressed as
numbers.
This type of research consists of close-ended questions and allows you to test hypotheses.
Sources of health data include:
• Vital statistics
• Surveys
• Administrative health records
qualitative research - ANS ✔process of collecting and analyzing data that is mainly expressed as
words or images.
This type of research consists of open-ended questions and enables you to explore ideas in-
depth.
Sources of data include:
• Interviews
• Focus groups
, • Community-based participatory studies
critical appraisal - ANS ✔process of carefully and systematically assessing the outcome of
scientific research (evidence) to judge its trustworthiness, value, and relevance in a particular
context.
1. Is the evidence from a known, reputable source?
2. Has the evidence been evaluated in any way? If so, how and by whom?
3. How up-to-date is the evidence?
4. How were things measured and were these methods appropriate and trustworthy?
5. Are the findings generalizable (broadly relevant) beyond the original context the evidence
was collected in?
6. Is this knowledge biased in some way? If so, how, how much, and what does this mean for
your interpretation or use of it? - ANS ✔6 questions to ask in order to critically appraise any
scientific finding
geography
natural environment
build environment
food systems
macro-environmental factors - ANS ✔five features of the physical environment
geography - ANS ✔(part of physical environment)
global location, country, region within a country, and urban/rural location
natural environment - ANS ✔(part of physical environment)
