ANTH 44500 - Medical Anthropology

An examination of health, disease, medicine and curing in a cross-cultural perspective. Focus on investigations into the ideology and meaning of illness, the relationship between patient and healer, and how responsibility for illness is assigned. Medical anthropology is concerned with knowledge about the socio-cultural contexts of disease and healing, and with how such knowledge might inform the management of our own health problems.

Cr. 3.
Student Learning Outcomes
1. Learn about the subfield of medical anthropology, including key concepts, theories, analytic perspectives, research methodologies, and important topical areas.
2. Refine critical thinking skills through the completion of class projects.
3. Learn the professional ethics that inform applied academic medical anthropology and global health by considering the philosophical and practical dilemmas surrounding the provisioning of health care in multiethnic and low-resource communities.
4. Learn the value of cross-cultural research and comparison in considering disease, health, and medical practice. The course will promote the value of mutual respect for persons and groups with different cultural values and practices.
5. Refine their skills in written and oral communication through written papers and discussion of readings and lectures.