This course offers a study of factors affecting physical, social and emotional well-being of women in our society.

Instructor contact information:
    Instructor voicemail: 213-763-3733
    Instructor Email: delzeil@lattc.edu
    Instructor Office: L-270
    Office Hours: 8-11 am Monday through Thursday. I will be on campus at other times but could be in meetings. If you call ahead and schedule an appointment you will be guaranteed to see me.

Orientation to Moodle Dates :  (attendance is optional - these represent repeat sessions)

• Tues. Sept. 1 from 6-7:30 pm in LRC-110
• Tues. Sept. 8 from 6-7:30 pm in LRC-110
• Sat. Sept. 15 from 9-11:00am in LRC-110

Special meetings can be arranged by request  Students with disabilities who need any assistance or accommodations should contact the instructor. The DSPS office (X035) is available to assist in accommodating a disabled student. 

Important Class Dates:

• Class begins August 31, 2009
• Last Day to Add: Sept. 13
• Last Day to drop without Penalty: Sept. 14
• Last Day to drop: Nov. 22, 2009
• Class ends: December 16, 2009

Students are responsible for dropping if they do not want to continue the class.   

Textbooks and Instructional Supplements:

• Text: Kolander, Ballard, Chandler. Contemporary Women's Health. McGraw-Hill,  2005 (3rd Edition)  ISBN: 0-07-246213-2.
• Class Homepage: http://wellness.lattc.edu/online/health8.html
• Moodle Portal: http://moodle.lattc.edu

Textbook, email, and connection to the Internet are required.  You need your own personal email id.  You can not share an email with a friend.

• Select a health topic, issue, or concern that is important to you.  It might be an illness that you or a family member is currently experiencing or one to which you could be at risk of contracting.  Do the research for this project as if you were doing the research to provide the information for someone whom you are trying to help. Consider that when a person has information and options available to them, it can reduce fear and anxiety and enable them to make better decisions. It provides them with more control and ultimately a form of self-empowerment. 
• Research the health issue using any means you wish, but including at least five Internet resources, giving reference to the sources you use. You can chose to use footnote notation or place the reference in [ ] at the end of the paragraph or sentence if you prefer.  You will be graded on the content, not strict adherence to the style of writing you chose.
• Please use a grammar and spell checker such as is found in MS Word.
• The paper needs to be a minimum of 4 pages to receive full credit.  A one-page, outline containing brief statements on each topic does not qualify for full points.
• Your paper should include the following:

1. State the health issue you are researching and why you picked that topic. (3 points)
2. Indicate the typical age at which the health issue appears. (3 points)
3. Provide a description of the health issue and include the number of people affected by it. (15 points)
4. Indicate if the health condition affects one group of people more than another. Indicate the specifics of that population (i.e. gender, ethnicity, geographic region) (5 points)
5. Symptoms of the health problem that helps a person recognize that they might have it and to seek medical help. (5 points)
6. Known or possible contributing factors, risk factors associated with this health problem (15 points)
• genetic predispositions:
• environmental factors:
• lifestyle factors:
7. Self-help guidelines (15 points)
• prevention through lifestyle modifications:
• prevention through nutrition:
• prevention through routine self-exams or testing:
8. National organizations that conduct research and provide information and physician referrals - include web links (3 points)
9. Online support groups, communities, or listserves - include web links and indicate if it is run by professionals or lay people. (4 points)
10. Online question and answer areas done by medical practitioners - include links to the web sites. (2 points)
11. Online web sites that specialize in this health issue - include web address and indicate WHY you may or may not trust the information found there. (3 points)
12. Treatment options done by Western medicine - if possible include side-effects of drugs, surgeries, success rates, and length of recovery time (3 points)
13. Alternative health treatments available for this problem (3 points)
14. Any developing/experimental drugs and/or therapies for this health issue (2 points)
15. Quackery, myths, or other misinformation to avoid on this health issue (2 points)
16. If you were just diagnosed with the medical condition of this term project, describe what steps you would take and why you would take them. This includes changes you would make in your lifestyle (eating, exercise, etc.) plus what medical treatments you would seek. (15)
17. Bibliography (2 points)

Current Events: You will be required to locate articles on health and topics covered in this class. They can be collected from a reliable news or health agency site on the Internet. Each current event will be posted to the Internet using the form provided for submissions in the Virtual Classroom.  Each current event assignment will include the following: 

1. URL to the complete article
2. Source of article, including date and author
3. Your opinion of the article (i.e. accurate, sales hype, poorly done research, surprise)
4. How this information relates to you or some member of your family (or future family)

Grades are awarded on total points obtained during the semester. Points are given for attendance, completed assignments, term project, and exams.   

Point Break-down for Grades - this will change if there are more or less assignments than anticipated. 
 

Letter Grade	Points Needed
A	1863
B	1656
C	1449
D	1242

 

Note: This syllabus is subject to change. If there are changes, students will be notified.