Where we live, study, and work affects our health across many domains - from the food we eat to the viruses we encounter and even our ability to access healthcare at a given moment. Health geography is the study of human-environment interactions and the influence of these interactions on population health - i.e., how people interact with their physical and social environment to promote health and wellbeing or to increase their susceptibility to disease and/or illness. This course will explore health through the lens of place. It will examine the relationship between health and disease outcomes and the socio-cultural and physical environment. More broadly, this course seeks to explore the questions: How does place affect one's health? How can geographic location explain inequalities in disease prevalence and access to healthcare? How does geography affect public health and also clinical decision making for the individual?
2 units · Medical Option (Med-Ltr-CR/NC)
Where we live, study, and work affects our health across many domains - from the food we eat to the viruses we encounter and even our ability to access healthcare at a given moment. Health geography is the study of human-environment interactions and the influence of these interactions on population health - i.e., how people interact with their physical and social environment to promote health and wellbeing or to increase their susceptibility to disease and/or illness. This course will explore health through the lens of place. It will examine the relationship between health and disease outcomes and the socio-cultural and physical environment. More broadly, this course seeks to explore the questions: How does place affect one's health? How can geographic location explain inequalities in disease prevalence and access to healthcare? How does geography affect public health and also clinical decision making for the individual?
Offered in Autumn 2026 at Stanford University.