Certificate in Community Health(2 Years)

Certificate in Community Health —Syllabus (2 Years)

Year 1

1. Foundations of Community Health

• Concepts, definitions, scope, and importance of community health
• Determinants of health: social, economic, environmental
• Health equity, social justice, and health disparities
• Historical development of public health & primary health care

2. Human Biology & Basic Life Sciences for Health Workers

• Anatomy and physiology: major body systems (digestive, circulatory, respiratory, excretory, nervous)
• Cell biology, tissues, organs
• Homeostasis and basic metabolic processes
• Introduction to microbiology and human pathogens

3. Hygiene, Sanitation & Environmental Health

• Water supply, safe drinking water
• Waste management (solid, liquid, biomedical)
• Sanitation practices, toilet facilities
• Vector control, pest control
• Air, noise, soil pollution and health impacts

4. Nutrition, Food Safety & Community Nutrition

• Macronutrients, micronutrients, balanced diet
• Malnutrition: undernutrition, overnutrition, micronutrient deficiencies
• Nutritional assessment methods (BMI, anthropometry etc.)
• Food safety, food hygiene, foodborne diseases
• Nutrition across life‑stages: children, adults, pregnancy, elderly

5. Maternal & Child Health and Reproductive Health

• Antenatal care (ANC), safe delivery, postnatal care
• Newborn care, immunization schedule, growth monitoring
• Breastfeeding, complementary feeding
• Family planning methods and counseling
• Reproductive health: menstrual health, sexually transmitted infections

6. Disease Prevention, Control & First Aid

• Classification of diseases: communicable, non‑communicable, emerging
• Common infections: prevention, control, vaccination
• Non‑communicable diseases: lifestyle risk factors, prevention
• Basic first aid: bleeding, burns, fractures, choking, CPR
• Emergency preparedness in community settings

7. Health Education & Communication

• Principles and strategies of health education
• Behavior change models and theories (e.g. KAP, Health Belief Model)
• Designing health promotion materials (posters, leaflets, audio‑visual)
• Community mobilization, peer education, participatory methods
• Use of media and social media in public health messaging

8. Field Work / Practical Training – Year 1

• Home visits: hygienic survey, health status assessment
• Community mapping and baseline survey
• Nutrition screening camps, immunization drives
• Health education sessions in community / schools
• Recording and reporting of field observations
• Supervised internship in local health centre

Year 2

1. Epidemiology, Biostatistics & Research Methods

• Basic epidemiology: incidence, prevalence, risk factors
• Types of studies: descriptive, analytical, experimental
• Measures: relative risk, odds ratio, rates
• Introduction to biostatistics: mean, median, mode, variance, standard deviation
• Data collection tools: questionnaires, interviews, observation
• Sampling methods, data analysis, interpretation
• Research ethics and consent, protocol writing

2. Health Systems, Health Policy & Planning

• Structure of health systems: local, district, state, national
• Primary, secondary, tertiary care: roles and linkages
• Health financing, health insurance, resource allocation
• Health policy formulation, implementation and evaluation
• Health program planning and budgeting
• Monitoring and evaluation frameworks, indicators

3. Public Health Issues & Programmes

• National health programmes (e.g. TB, malaria, HIV, NCDs, maternal health)
• Disease surveillance systems and outbreak investigation
• Environmental health challenges (urban, slum, disaster)
• Mental health, substance abuse, adolescent health
• Health of vulnerable groups: elderly, disabled, migrants, tribal populations

4. Leadership, Management & Administration in Community Health

• Health project management: planning, implementation, supervision
• Human resource management in health settings
• Logistics, supply chain, inventory management
• Quality assurance, standards, accreditation in community health
• Legal, ethical issues in community health practice

5. Health Promotion, Behavior Change & Community Mobilization

• Advanced strategies for behavior change
• Community participation, stakeholder engagement
• Advocacy, health policy communication
• Designing and implementing health campaigns
• Monitoring impact of health promotion interventions

6. Disaster Management, Emergency Health & Global Health

• Concepts of disaster, risk reduction, preparedness
• Role of health workers in disasters and emergencies
• International health: global health concerns, pandemics
• One Health approach, zoonotic diseases
• Climate change and health

7. Capstone Project / Major Field Project

• Identify a community health problem
• Conduct baseline survey, intervention plan
• Implement intervention, monitoring, evaluation
• Report writing, presentation, dissemination

8. Advanced Field Internship & Practicum — Year 2

• Longer posting in primary health centres / community health projects
• Exposure to health programme implementation
• Data collection and analysis in real setting
• Health education campaigns, stakeholder coordination
• Final report, presentation, viva / defense