Fifteen students will travel from Birmingham to Mississippi, Louisiana and Georgia to study population health and how social determinants of health and inequities are affecting health outcomes. The trip is led by Lisa McCormick, DrPH, associate dean for Public Health Practice and associate professor of environmental health science in the School of Public Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

“The purpose of this course is to explore issues affecting population health in the southeastern United States,” McCormick said. “The sum of this experience will illustrate the interdisciplinary nature of public health practice and introduce students to the value of working in rural, medically underserved communities and/or on behalf of medically underserved populations.”

The course will enable students to look at issues around poverty, pollution, infectious disease outbreaks, chronic diseases, natural disasters and mass casualty disaster response. Officials from local, state, tribal and federal public health agencies will meet with students to discuss programs and infrastructure in place to advance health equity and address the social determinants of health impacting the populations they serve.