221.641.01 MEASUREMENT METHODS IN HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCIES

Gives students an understanding and skills needed in the measurement of populations and health indicators in humanitarian emergencies, when conventional measurement methods cannot be utilized. Includes assessment methods, sampling approaches in a variety of emergency situations, design and conduct of surveys, and the analysis and presentation of results. Includes discussions and examples of active and passive surveillance methods for refugee and other emergency situations. Both qualitative and quantitative methods will be presented.

The overall goal of the course is to give students an overview of a selection of field-based methods used in humanitarian emergencies to measure basic health indicators and demographic characteristics of affected populations. The objectives of the course are as follows: 1) Students will be able to define and classify disaster types, to describe the phases of a humanitarian emergency, and to describe the assessment process in emergencies; 2) Students will be able to describe the basic principles and uses of demography and epidemiology in humanitarian contexts; 3) Students will be able to describe (and, in some cases, practice) a selection of methods, both qualitative and quantitative, used in field-based assessments of humanitarian emergencies; 4) Students will develop and present a critique of a reading assignment; and 5) Students will write a 1,500 word research paper describing a selected methodological approach and its application in humanitarian emergencies.