This Postgraduate Certificate in Health Protection is a part-time programme, delivered online, running from January to June. The programme is designed on a module basis to meet the needs of working professionals. A student who subsequently applies and is admitted to continue to Master's level (Master of Public Health) will hold exemptions in passed modules taken in the Postgraduate Certificate in Health Protection if she/he applies for the Master of Public Health within 5 years from the date of successful completion of the Certificate Examinations.

Candidates must have the following:

• An appropriate degree or professional qualification in healthcare or health services management (such as registered nurses, pharmacists, midwives, health services managers);
• Candidates may be required to present for interview.

Admission to the programme will be subject to the approval of the College of Medicine and Health. Application for entry should be made online at http://www.pac.ie.

Fitness to Practise
Commencing with the 2013/2014 intake of first year students (including repeats), this programme will be subject to the University's Fitness to Practise Policy - full details may be found here.

Students must satisfactorily complete modules to the value of 30 credits.

Core modules
EH6082 Introduction to Health Protection (Online) (5 credits)
EH6083 Advanced Health Protection (Online) (5 credits)
EH6055 Global and Environmental Health (Online) (5 credits)
MB6009 Principles of Microbiology (Online) (5 credits)

Elective modules
Students must choose 10 credits from the following:

EH6049 International Perspectives on Global Health (Online) (5 credits)
EH6057 The Big Four: HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Tuberculosis and Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) (Online) (5 credits)
EH6063 Tobacco Control: National and International Approaches (Online) (5 credits)

Module Semester Information may be found here. Module Descriptions may be found here.

Examinations
Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards 2016 Book and for each module in the Book of Modules 2015/2016.

Programme Learning Outcomes for Postgraduate Certificate in Health Protection (NFQ Level 9, Minor Award)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the appropriate management of infections caused by different pathogenic microorganisms
• Investigate the transmission of endemic and epidemic infections from sufficient knowledge of the characteristics and transmission of causative organisms
• Select appropriate methods for control of hospital and community acquired infectious disease
• Design, implement and evaluate co-ordinated control methods utilising tools such as reflective practice, audit and surveillance
• Assess constraints of health protection delivery services and provide possible solutions to barriers
• Describe the global impact of infectious diseases and strategies which are effective, partially effective and ineffective in management and prevention
• Discuss the wider aspects of Health Protection
• Discuss and identify effective methods to bring about practice change.