Developing a model curriculum for a university course in health impact assessment in the USA

As health impact assessments (HIAs) become increasingly common in the USA, there is growing demand for instruction beyond short courses and online training. As of October 2013, there are graduate level courses that include instruction on HIA in at least 17 universities in the USA, including four courses that focus explicitly on HIA. Instructors of these four courses collaborated to develop a model curriculum for teaching HIA that draws on a framework for experiential learning and on a theoretical model of curriculum formulation. This article includes an in-depth analysis of these courses and presents a model curriculum for HIA instruction during an academic quarter or semester course in a university. This model curriculum may help faculty develop a graduate level HIA course at their institution, as well as inform public health and community design professionals interested in building capacity to conduct HIAs, and students considering taking an HIA course. International instructors could also learn from the US experience, and apply the model curriculum to their setting and educational structure.