UNSW Handbook Course - On Drugs: Pharmaceuticals, Medicine, and Culture

On Drugs: Pharmaceuticals, Medicine, and Culture - HPSC2665


	Faculty: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
	School: School of History and Philosophy of Science
	Contact: Rasmussen,Nicolas
	Campus: Kensington Campus
	Career: Undergraduate
	Units of Credit: 6
	EFTSL: 0.125 (more info)
	Contact Hours per Week: 3
	Enrolment Requirements:
	Prerequisite: 36 units of credit
	Session Offered: See Class Timetable
	Fee Band: 1 (more info)

Description

Drugs are powerful forces of change, rapidly reshaping medical care, lifestyles and even nations. Examines the 'life cycles' of successful medicines developed in the past century, from sex hormones to amphetamines to the latest genetically engineered protein drugs. Considers how the pharmaceutical industry creates new drugs, how marketing interacts with doctor and patient behavior, and how medicine, culture and politics are affected in the process. Applies general concepts regarding the way scientific and social change are connected to help understand drugs and their impact.

Learning Outcomes

In this course students will:

Learn to understand better where new drugs come from, how they influence medicine and wider society, and how and why some come to be classified and regulated as pharmaceuticals while others are classified dangerous and banned
Gain skills for thinking critically and engaging in independent and reflective learning about the pharmaceutical industry, drugs in health policy, and social responses to illicit drug use.

Assessment

In-class test - 20%
Final test - 40%
Tutorial workbook - 40%

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