Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health University of Arizona

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health
University of Arizona
SYLLABUS
Epidemiologic Methods (EPID 573B; CPH 573B)
Spring 2017
Time: Monday, 1:30-2:45
Wednesday, 1:30-2:45
Location: Drachman Hall, A-118
Instructor:

Eyal Shahar, MD, MPH
Professor
Phone: 626-8025
Email:
Office: Drachman Hall, Room 236
Home page: />
Office Hours: By appointment (send an email; suggest 3 dates/times).
Teaching Assistants:

None

Course Description: This course will increase the student's understanding of research methods
in epidemiology (follows EPID 573A in the epidemiology methods sequence)
Course Prerequisites: EPID 573A, EPID 576A; prerequisite or concurrent registration, EPID
576B
Course Notes: All course material will be available on d2l.
Recommended Texts/Readings: No textbook to buy. Readings (book chapters) provided on
the website.
Course Requirements:

Prepare for class and study the material after class. Attend all, or most, classes. Turn in
each homework assignment on the due date (see instructions later). Take each quiz online
on the scheduled time. Take a mid-term exam and a final exam on the scheduled time.
Much of the material will be taught in class, but occasionally you will need to study some
topics on your own (using slides and readings).


Homework procedure:
•
•
•

Complete homework assignments on your own (using a red pen!) and bring a hard
copy to class for the homework review session
Mark your mistakes (and add notes) during the in-class review session, using a blue
pen, a black pen, or a pencil (NOT a red pen)
Scan the document after the review session and upload a single PDF file onto the
Dropbox—by the due date.

Homework grading rules (READ!)

•
•
•
•
•
•

Delayed homework submission by one day, if accepted by me (80%); longer than
one day (0%)

No evidence of marking secondary notes or corrections (50%)
Uploading multiple PDF files instead of a single PDF file (50%)
Uploading a Word file or JPEG file instead of a PDF file (50%)
Ineligible handwriting or poor quality scan (0%)
Incomplete homework (0%-50%, at my discretion)

Quizzes procedure:
•
•
•
•

All quizzes should be taken online.
There are 8 quizzes, one per module. Each contains 10 questions. You will have 30
minutes to answer each quiz (on your own, of course).
You must complete your quiz within the specified time window (two days).
Put the time window on your calendar to avoid “I forgot” messages.

Grading/Student Evaluation: Regular grades are awarded for this course (A, B, C, D, E)

A: > 90%
B: > 80% (89.5 is B, not A)
C: > 70% (79.5 is C, not B)
D: > 60%
E: < 60%
Homework assignments (8)
Quizzes (8)
Mid-term exam
Final exam (cumulative)

20% (graded for completion, as specified above)
20% (auto-graded)
20%
40%

If you think I have made an error in grading, please tell me soon (and not at the end of the
course.) There are no extra-credit tasks and no “make-up” for a higher grade.
Class Attendance/Participation: Regular attendance is expected. If you miss a class,

you should find a way to learn the material I taught. All holidays or special events
observed by organized religions will be honored for those students who show affiliation


with that particular religion. Absences pre-approved by the UA Dean of Students (or
Dean’s designee) will be honored.
Course Schedule: shown below

Required Statements:
Communications: You are responsible for reading emails sent to your UA account from
your professor and the announcements that are placed on the course web site.
Information about readings, news events, your grades, assignments and other course
related topics will be communicated to you with these electronic methods. The official
policy can be found at: />Disability Accommodation: If you anticipate issues related to the format or requirements
of this course, please meet with me. I would like us to discuss ways to ensure your full
participation in the course. If you determine that formal, disability-related accommodations
are necessary, it is very important that you be registered with Disability Resources (6213268; drc.arizona.edu) and notify me of your eligibility for reasonable accommodations.
We can then plan how best to coordinate your accommodations. The official policy can be
found at: />Academic Integrity: All UA students are responsible for upholding the University of
Arizona Code of Academic Integrity, available through the office of the Dean of Students
and online: The official policy found

at: and
/>Classroom Behavior: (Statement of expected behavior and respectful exchange of ideas)
Students are expected to be familiar with the UA Policy on Disruptive Behavior in an
Instructional Setting found at and the Policy
on Threatening Behavior by Students found at
/>Grievance Policy: Should a student feel he or she has been treated unfairly, there are a
number of resources available. With few exceptions, students should first attempt to
resolve difficulties informally by bringing those concerns directly to the person responsible
for the action, or with the student's graduate advisor, Assistant Dean for Student and
Alumni Affairs, department head, or the immediate supervisor of the person responsible for
the action. If the problem cannot be resolved informally, the student may file a formal
grievance using the Graduate College Grievance Policy found at
/>Grade Appeal Policy: />UA Smoking and Tobacco Policy:
The University's "Smoking and Tobacco Policy" is designed to promote the health and
wellness of all members of the University community, including visitors to campus, and it


will prohibit the use of tobacco- and nicotine-containing products on property owned or
controlled by the UA. This includes the main campus, the Arizona Health Sciences Center,
the Phoenix Biomedical Campus, UA South, all satellite campuses, University vehicles,
and any property leased by the UA. Smoking cessation aids, such as nicotine gum,
patches, and nasal sprays, will be permitted, but all other forms of tobacco or nicotine including pipes, cigars, cigarettes and e-cigarettes, all types of smokeless tobacco, and
water pipes - will be prohibited. The latest version of the policy is available at:
/>Syllabus Changes: Information contained in the course syllabus, other than the grade
and absence policies, may be subject to change with reasonable advance notice, as
deemed appropriate.


Course Schedule: Spring 2017

Date

Topics

Readings

Jan 11

Introduction/ TBD (guest lecture)

Jan 16

University Holiday

Jan 18

Causal diagrams

(module 1)

Jan 23

Causal diagrams

(module 1)

Jan 25

Causal diagrams

(module 1)

Jan 30

Review of homework #1

(module 1)

Feb 1

Mean difference

(module 2)

Feb 6

Mean Difference

(module 2)

Feb 8

Review of homework #2

(module 2)

Feb 13

Modified mean difference

(module 3)

Feb 15

Modified mean difference
(module 3)
Review homework #3 on your own

Quiz
time window

Homework
due date

Quiz 1:
Jan 30-31

HW #1 (1/31)

Chapter (causal
diagrams and three
pairs of biases)

Volzke et al.
Menopausal status and
hepatic steatosis

Chapter 9
(mean difference)

Quiz 2:
Feb 9-10

Chapter 10
(modified mean
difference)

HW #2 (2/10)


Feb 20

Odds ratio

(module 4)

Feb 22

Odds ratio

(module 4)

Feb 27

Odds ratio

(module 4)

Mar 1

Odds ratio

(module 4)

Mar 6

Review of homework #4

(module 4)

Mar 8

Modified odds ratio

(module 5)

Chapter 12
(odds ratio)

Shahar et al. Hormone
replacement therapy
and sleep

Quiz 3:
Feb 20-21

HW #3 (2/21)

Quiz 4:
Mar 7-8

HW #4 (3/8)

Quiz 5:
Mar 27-28

HW #5 (3/28)

Mar 13
Spring break
Mar 15
Mar 20

Modified odds ratio

(module 5)

Mar 22

Modified odds ratio

(module 5)

Mar 27

Review of homework #5

(module 5)

Mar 29

Mid-term exam

Apr 3

Matched odds ratio

Apr 5

Matched odds ratio
(module 6)
Review homework #6 on your own

(module 6)

Chapter 13
(modified odds ratio)

Article: Herbst et al.
Adenocarcinoma of the
vagina NEJM
1971;284:878-881
Article: causal diagrams
and the logic of matched
case-control studies


Apr 10

Rate ratio

(module 7)

Apr 12

Rate ratio

(module 7)

Quiz 6:
Apr 10-11

Apr 17

No class

Apr 19

Review of homework #7

(module 7)

Quiz 7:
Apr 20-21

HW #7 (4/21)

Apr 24

Hazard ratio

(module 8)

Apr 26

Hazard ratio

(module 8)

May 1

Hazard ratio

(module 8)

May 3

Hazard ratio (and review of homework #8)

Quiz 8:
May 2-3

HW #8 (5/3)

May 8 (Monday)

Final Exam: 1:00 PM−3:00 PM

Chapter 17
(rate ratio)

HW #6 (4/11)

Chapter 18
(hazard ratio)