NRSG 335: Historical Foundations of Health Disparities in the U.S.
This course runs in Fall of 2024 and is open to ALL Emory College of Arts and Sciences Students. You do not need to be pre-nursing, and it will count for both the ECAS Race and Ethnicity GER and towards a History Major/Minor. The course is taught by Dr. Kylie Smith, who is Associate Faculty with the Department of History, and Director of the Center for Healthcare History and Policy at Emory.
The class runs on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1pm to 2.15pm in Tarbutton Hall, Room 105. The assignments for the course are short discussion posts, an annotated bibliography, and participation in a group project designed to develop an historically informed policy project that will live on this website.
The course is an introduction to the historical factors which have created disparities in American health care systems particularly in regards to race. Students will analyze the ways that categories such as “race” and ethnicity have been constructed and utilized in health science, research, and practice and evaluate the legacy of racist medical beliefs and practices.
Through an examination of past health care activism, students will also learn how local communities have sought to address disparities and consider the way these activities can inform current movements towards health equity. The course will help students situate the development of health and medicine in the broader social context of American society since slavery and emancipation, and will facilitate the development of historical research and policy development skills.
For questions, please email Dr. Smith here
