The Department of Social Medicine is an interdisciplinary department comprised of social scientists, humanities scholars and physicians. We study the dynamic interplay of people, culture, the environment and their impact on health care delivery and health outcomes. Our teaching, research and service inform medical students, health professionals and the public about factors affecting clinical decision making, the social responsibilities of health care providers, the social determinants of health and illness and health policy and politics.
Our department has active research and teaching expertise in the following areas:
Our faculty's disciplines include:
Students, faculty and staff experience impactful research, education and outreach activities abroad and in immigrant communities in the U.S. to truly understand global health issues and increase multicultural awareness.
Discover the diverse research topics and current projects conducted by our faculty.
From our mission to teaching topics to employment opportunities, you’ll find it all here.
April 15, 2020
Dan Skinner, Ph.D., had decided to transform his Health Care Management Clerkship course from in-person to distance learning even before the COVID-19 outbreak happened. But having the course already available to students via their laptops seemed a bit of luck when the virus hit.
January 15, 2020
A public forum series about Ohio’s opioid crisis, based on a book edited by two faculty at the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, has won a national award for the state humanities council that helped fund it.
December 18, 2019
Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine faculty member Berkeley Franz, Ph.D., is one of two principal investigators on a new grant-funded research project that will examine how much community health benefit for-profit hospitals provide to the areas in which they’re located.
June 6, 2019
More than 50 people from 20 counties across Ohio have contributed stories and art to “Not Far from Me,” a new book on the state’s opioid crisis edited by faculty members from the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine.
