Health Promotion & Chronic Disease Prevention in an Aging Population

Human populations are aging at a rapid rate and living longer lives than previous decades. The purpose of this course is to advance medical and public health professionals in the field of aging, specifically in the area of health promotion and chronic disease prevention. Course participants will learn about the heterogeneity of epidemiological research in the context of age-related disease and disability using federal public health data sets. This interdisciplinary course will examine the processes of human aging as well as the major chronic diseases and comorbidities that affect older adults. The definitions and measurements of chronic disease and health promotion will be emphasized. A public health perspective within an ecologic framework is emphasized to discuss disease prevention that aims to maximize function and increase independence among older adults. Nuanced approaches to chronic disease management will be discussed, including how to apply disease trajectory empirical data to end-of-life policy and procedure.