Humanitarian Assistance and Health

• • Humanitarianism and humanitarian assistance
  • Legal frameworks for humanitarian assistance
  • Assistance and relief operations
  • Current issues in humanitarian assistance

In order to enrol in this subject, you must be accepted into one of the following degrees:

Elective

• ACU-GHA-MAS-2020
• ACU-GHA-MAS-2020
• ACU-MPH-MAS-2020

Special requirements

No special requirements

Humanitarian assistance is intended to “save lives, alleviate suffering and maintain human dignity during and after man-made crises and disasters caused by natural hazards, as well as to prevent and strengthen preparedness for when such situations occur”. Furthermore, humanitarian assistance should be governed by key humanitarian principles, namely: humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence. In 2016, it was estimated that over 164 million people living in 47 countries were in need of humanitarian assistance. Over a quarter of these people were in Yemen, Syria and Iraq. Most countries with humanitarian need experience complex emergencies, in which disaster, conflict and refugee displacement occur simultaneously. Across the world, there were an estimated 65.6 million displaced people in 2016. Humanitarian assistance is highly relevant today. This subject will enable  students to gain an understanding of humanitarian principles, theory and definitions, along with an appreciation of the history of humanitarianism and significant events that have shaped modern humanitarian assistance. Student will build their understanding of the global architecture of humanitarian assistance, in terms of international relief systems, roles and responsibilities of relevant actors (government and non-government) and the principles of international humanitarian law. Students will then explore the health-related dimensions of humanitarian assistance, with emphasis on prevention and management of acute health risks during a humanitarian emergency. Students will conclude the subject by exploring other critical issues of humanitarian assistance, including relief operations, planning and needs assessment, disaster resilience and risk reduction, security issues, humanitarian workforce, relationship to long-term development, emergent humanitarian needs and confidence in humanitarian organisations. The aim of the subject is to give students a deep understanding of the continuing relevance of humanitarian assistance to public health.

A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with University assessment requirements. For PUBH641, assessments will consider both theoretical and practical aspects relating humanitarian assistance and health at local and global levels.

• Short Answer Task (40%)
• Evaluation of humanitarian response (50%)
• Practice Reflection (10%)