COMMUNITY MEDICINE

Learning Objectives:

After completion of training, the MBBS student must be:

1. Aware of the physical, social, psychological, economic, and environmental health

determinants of health and disease.
2. Able to think epidemiologically, diagnose totally, treat comprehensively and be able to
function as community and first contact physician.
3. Able to apply the clinical skills to recognize and manage common health problems including
their physical, emotional mental and social aspects at the individual, family and community
levels and deal with public health emergencies.
4. Able to identify, prioritize and manage the health problems of the community after making
community diagnosis.
5. Able to perform as an effective leader of health team at primary care level, in planning,
supervising & monitoring the services of health professionals in health team.

To achieve this, the student should:

a. Inculcate values like compassion, empathy to poor, rational and ethical practice, to
ensure quality professional practice.
b. Understand the principles of prevention and control of communicable and non-
communicable diseases.
c. Participate actively in epidemiological studies to identify and prioritize health problems of
the community. Collect data, analyze, interpret, and apply relevant statistical tests, to
make a report.
d. Participate actively in health care service for special groups like mothers, infants, under
five children, school children, adolescents and elderly of rural, tribal and urban slum
dwellers.
e. Participate actively in investigation of outbreaks/epidemics of various diseases and other
public health emergencies.
f. Participate actively in implementation of National Health Programmes.
g. Learn and practice principles of behavioural change communication, supervision,
leadership, resource management, health information management, community
participation and coordination, administrative functions etc.
h. Continuously upgrade his knowledge, attitude and skills in the subject.

These objectives would be with reference to knowledge, attitude and skills.

 Course Contents

I. CONCEPTS OF HEALTH AND DISEASE

Course Contents Must Desirable

Know to know
1. Definition, concepts & evolution (history) of Public
Health.
2. Definition of health, holistic concepts of health
including concept of spiritual health, appreciation of
health as a relative concept , dimensions &
determinants of health.
3. Characteristics of agent, host and environmental
factors in health and disease and the multi factorial
etiology of disease.
4. Understanding the concept of prevention & control
of disease.
5. Understanding the natural history of disease and
application of interventions at various levels of
prevention.
6. Introduction to various health indicators.
7. Health profile of India- already in chapter XIV.

II. SOCIAL AND BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES

1. Concept of Sociology & Behavioral Science, Clinico-

socio-cultural and demographic evaluation of the
individual, family and community.
2. Assessment of barriers to good health and health
seeking behaviour.
3. Role of family in health and disease
4. Socio-cultural factors related to health and disease in
the context of urban and rural societies.
5. Assessment of Socioeconomic status, effect of health
& illness on socioeconomic status
6. Doctor-patient relationship.
7. Social psychology, Community behaviour and
community relationship, Hospital Sociology
psychology
8. Social Security
9. Impact of urbanization on health and disease- will be
covered in chapter XIII.
III. ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH

1. Water: Concepts of safe and wholesome water,

sanitary sources of water, waterborne diseases,
water purification process. water quality standards.
2. Physical, chemical & bacteriological standards of shifted
drinking water quality and tests for assessing
bacteriological quality of water.
3. Health hazards of air, water, noise, radiation
pollution.
4. Concepts of water conservation, rainwater
harvesting & Global warming.
5. Concepts of solid waste, human excreta and sewage
disposal.
6. Awareness of standards of housing and the effect of
housing on health.
8. Role of vectors in the causation of diseases.
9. Identifying features of vectors and their control
measures.
10. Life cycles of vectors and advantages and limitations shifted
of various vector control measures.
11. Mode of action, application cycle of commonly used
insecticides and rodenticides.

IV. HEALTH PROMOTION AND EDUCATION / COMMUNICATION FOR

BEHAVIOURAL CHANGE
(INFORMATION, EDUCATION, COMMUNICATION)

a. Understand the concepts of Health promotion and

Education, IEC, Behavioural change communication,
Counseling.
b. Principles & methods of health promotion and
education.
c. Barriers to effective communication and methods to
overcome them.
d. Various methods of health education with their
advantages and limitations.
e. Organizing health promotion and education activities
at individual, family and community settings.
f. Evaluation of health promotion and education
programme.
V. NUTRITION

1. Common sources of various nutrients and special

nutritional requirements according to age, sex,
activity, physiological conditions.
2. Nutritional assessment of individual, families and the
community by using appropriate method such as:
anthropometrics, clinical examination etc.
3. Plan and recommend a suitable diet for the
individuals and families as per local availability of
foods and economic status, etc.
4. Common nutrition related health disorders (like
protein energy malnutrition, obesity, vitamin A
deficiency, anemia, iodine deficiency, fluorosis, food
toxin diseases) and their control and management.
5. Food fortification, additives and adulteration, food
hygiene
6. Social and cultural factors in nutrition and health
7. Important National Nutritional Programmes.
8. National Nutrition policy
9. Nutritional surveillance, education and rehabilitation.

VI. OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH

1. Relate the history of symptoms with specific

occupations including agricultural related
occupation.
2. Employees State Insurance Act. scheme.
3. Specific occupational health hazards, their risk
factors and its preventive measures.
4. Concepts of ergonomics
5. Diagnostic criteria of various occupational related shifted
diseases.
6. Other legislations related to occupational health.

VII. BIO-STATISTICS

a. Collection, classification, analysis, interpretation and

presentation of statistical data.
b. Application of statistical methods in various study
designs.
 c. Common sampling techniques, simple statistical
methods, frequency distribution, measures of central
tendency and dispersion.
d. Applying common tests of significance in various
study designs
e. Use of life tables. shifted

VIII. BASIC EPIDEMIOLOGY

1. Epidemiology: definition, concepts, uses and its role

in health and disease.
2. Use of basic epidemiological tools to make a
community diagnosis of the health situation, in
orders to formulate appropriate intervention
measures.
3. Definition of the terms used in describing disease
transmission and control.
4. Modes of transmission and measures for prevention
and control of communicable and non-communicable
diseases.
5. General principles of prevention and control of
communicable, non communicable diseases and
other health conditions of public health importance.
6. Principal sources of epidemiological data.
7. Definition, calculation and interpretation of morbidity
and mortality indicators
8. Screening of health related attributes & diseases.
Need, uses and evaluation of screening tests.
9. Investigation of an epidemic of communicable
disease and to understand the principals of control
measures.
10. Epidemiological study designs & Research
Methodologies.
11. Concept of association, causation and biases.
12. Application of computers in epidemiology.

IX. EPIDEMIOLOGY OF SPECIFIC DISEASES: COMMUNICABLE & NON-

COMMUNICABLE

Communicable and non-communicable diseases of public health importance, relevant to

the region, for which National Disease Control/ Eradication Programmes have been
formulated.
 Communicable Diseases:

Intestinal infections: Poliomyelitis,* viral hepatitis,* Diarrhoea,* Cholera,*

Helminthiasis,* Typhoid*, Amoebiasis & Giardiasis,* Food Poisoning.*

Respiratory infections: Acute Respiratory infections*, Measles*, Diphtheria*,

Whooping cough*, Tuberculosis*, SARS**, Influenza**, Meningococal
Meningitis**, Mumps**.

Vector – borne infections: Malaria*, Filaria*, Kala Azar*, Dengue*, Yellow

Fever**, Chickengunya fever**.

Surface Infections: Sexually Transmitted Diseases*, HIV & AIDS*, Tetanus*,

Leprosy*, Scabies*, Pediculosis*.

Zoonosis: Rabies, Japanese encephalitis*, Plague*, Kyasanur Forest Disease**,

Leptospirosis**, Anthrax**.

Hospital acquired infection**

Non-communicable and lifestyle diseases:

Coronary heart disease, Hypertension, Stroke, Rheumatic heart disease, Cancers,

Obesity, Diabetes, Blindness, Injury and Accidents.

New emerging diseases:

(* Must Know, **Desirable to Know)

1. Extent of problem, epidemiology and natural history of

disease
2. Public health importance of particular disease in local
area
3. Influence of social, cultural and ecological factors on
the epidemiology of particular disease.
4. Diagnosing disease by clinical methods, using essential
laboratory techniques at primary care level.
5. Treatment of a case, as per National Programme
guidelines, and also follow up of case.
6. National Health Programme for particular disease.
7. Understand the principles of measures to control a
disease epidemic.
8. Principles of planning, implementing and evaluating
control measures for disease at community level
bearing in mind the public health importance of the
disease.
9. Training of health workers in disease surveillance,
control and treatment, health education
10. Management information system in particular disease.
 11. Prevention & Control of new emerging diseases and life shifted
style related health problems
12. International Classification of Disease (ICD)

X. DEMOGRAPHY AND VITAL STATISTICS

1. Concepts of Demography, Demographic cycle, Vital

statistics.
2. Definition, calculation and interpretation of demographic
indices like birth rate, death rate, fertility rates.
3. Declining sex ratio and its social implication.
4. Population explosion, population dynamics of India.
5. Population control measures.
6. National Population Policy.
7. Sources of vital statistics like census, SRS, NFHS, NSSO etc

XI. REPRODUCTIVE AND CHILD HEALTH

1. Current status of Reproductive and Child Health.

2. Screening of high risk groups and common health
problems.
3. Local customs and practices during pregnancy, childbirth
and lactation, child feeding practices.
4. Organization, implementation and evaluation of
Reproductive child health (RCH) components, including
child survival and safe motherhood (CSSM), Universal
Immunization Programme (UIP), Integrated Child
Development Services Scheme (ICDS), Integrated
Management of Neonatal and Childhood Illness (IMNCI),
Janani Suraksha Yojna (JSY) & Accredited Social Health
Activist (ASHA) under National Rural Health Mission
(NRHM) and other existing Programmes.
5. Various family planning methods, their advantages and
shortcomings.
6. Medical Termination of Pregnancy and Act (MTP Act) &
Pre-Natal Diagnostic Test Act (PNDT Act).
7. Adolescent health.
8. Handicapped child.
9. Gender issues and Women empowerment
10. Organizations, technical and operational aspects of the
National Family Welfare Programme.
11. Genetics & Health
XII. SCHOOL HEALTH

1. Objectives and components of School Health Programme.

2. Activities of the programme :
a. Periodic medical examination of the children and the
teachers.
b. Immunization of the children in the school.
c. Health promotion and education.
d. Mid-day meals.
XIII. URBAN HEALTH

1. Common health problems (Medical, Social, Environmental,

Economical, Psychological) due to urbanization.
of urban slum dwellers.
2. Organization of health services for and in urban slums.
3. National policy on urban health

XIV. HEALTH CARE SYSTEM IN INDIA

1. Concepts of Primary Health Care and Comprehensive

Health Care.
2. Health profile of India
3. Health care Delivery System in India and infrastructure
at peripheral, primary, secondary and tertiary care level
4. Job responsibilities of different category of workers in Shifted
health system
5. Voluntary Health agencies working in India
XV. HEALTH PLANNING, MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

1 Concepts of Planning, Management, Public Health

Administration.
2 Components of planning a health activity.
3 Classification and understanding of various Qualitative
and Quantitative Health Management techniques.
4 Overview of administration at village, block, district, state
and central level in India
5 Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP)
6 Health related Millennium Development Goals
7 National Health Policy & National Rural Health Mission
(NRHM)
8 Concepts of Health Economics in health planning and
management.
9 Concepts, scope and methods of Health Audit.
 10 Role of Planning Commission and five year plans in
development of health sector in India
11 Various health committees of Government of India and
their important recommendations.

XVI. DISASTER MANAGEMENT

1. Principles of disaster preparedness and application of these

in disaster management
2. Bio-terrorism

XVII. PUBLIC HEALTH LEGISLATIONS

1. Birth and Death registration act, PFA , MTP, CPA, PNDT

Child labor act, Human organ act
2. Other public health legislations

XVIII INTERNATIONAL HEALTH

1. Role of various multilateral, bilateral international health

organizations like WHO, UNICEF etc.
2. Organizational structure of these organizations
3. International Health Regulation (IHR) shifted

XIX. BIO-MEDICAL WASTE AND ITS DISPOSAL

1. Classification/ Category, sources, health hazards and

treatment of Bio-Medical Waste
2. Application of these principles in different setting of
health care delivery system

XX. HEALTH CARE OF ELDERLY

1. Size of elderly population, their common health problems

and justification of their special care
2. Screening procedures for early detection of various shifted
diseases and disabilities of elderly.
3. Comprehensive health care aspects of elderly
4. National policy for care of elderly
XXI. MENTAL HEALTH

1. Importance of mental health care in primary care Shifted

settings.
2. Comprehensive mental health care at primary care shifted
settings.

SKILLS
Skills Able to do Able to Assist Observe
independently perform
under
guidance
General Skills.
The student should be able to:
1. Elicit Clinico-social history. Describe +
agent, host and environmental factors
determining health and disease.
2. Identify, prioritize and manage
common health problems of +
community.
3. Apply elementary principles of
epidemiology in carrying out simple +
epidemiological studies.
4. Work as a team member in rendering +
health care.
5. Carry out health promotion and +
education effectively in the community.

Skills in relation to specific topics

1. Communication:
• Should be well versed with the art of +
interviewing techniques to elicit the
desired information & with art of
counseling to counsel.
• The student should be able to +
communicate effectively with family
members at home, patients at clinics
or at home; and community.
• Individuals, family or a group for +
health promotion and education, and
also with peers.
2. Team activity:
• Work as an effective member of the +
team; in planning and carrying out
field work like school health, conduct
health camps etc.
3. Environmental sanitation:
• Able to assess environmental risk +
factors and suggest action plan.
• Able to collect water and stool samples +
for microbiological analysis.
• Able to identify insects of public health +
importance, able to use effective
insecticides.
4. Communicable and Non-
communicable disease
• Eliciting Clinico-social history and +
examining the patient for diagnosis
and treatment.
• Assessing the severity and/or
classifying dehydration in diarrhea,
upper respiratory tract infection, dog +
bite, leprosy, classify tuberculosis
(Categorization) and STD.
• Fixing, staining and examining +
peripheral smear for malaria, sputum
for AFB, Hemoglobin estimation, urine
and stool examination.
• Adequate and appropriate treatment +
and follow up of public health diseases
and of locally endemic diseases.
• Advice regarding prevention and +
prophylaxis against common and
locally endemic diseases.
• Use of proper screening methods in +
early diagnosis of certain diseases,
applicable at primary care level.
• Able to detect outbreak in early stage, +
spot mapping, investigation of
outbreak, notification of notifiable
diseases.
• Surveillance skills development, +
calculating various health indicators
and their interpretations.
5. Reproductive and Child Health:
• Antenatal- examination of women, +
application of at-risk approach in
antenatal care. +
• Intranatal care- conducting a normal
delivery, referral indications.
• Postnatal- assessment of newborn and +
mother, promotion of breast feeding,
advice on weaning and on family
planning.
• Immunization- able to immunize the
eligible using desired routes, for
providing vaccines.
• Contraception- able to advice +
appropriate contraceptive method.
• Able to insert any Intra Uterine Device +
(IUD)
6. Statistics:
• Able to draw sample using simple +
sampling techniques. +
• Apply appropriate test of significance.
• Calculation of various health indicators
and presentation of data. +
7. Nutrition:
• Conduct complete nutritional +
assessment of individual using clinical,
anthropometric and diet survey tools.
• Ability to use and interpret road to +
health card.
• Advice appropriate balance diet and +
suggest any dietary modification
• Nutritional promotion and education to +
specific groups and related to specific
nutritional diseases.
8. Occupation Health: +
• Screening of workers fro any
occupation related health problem.
9. Managerial skills:
• Able to make community diagnosis and +
take remedial measure for improving
health of community. +
• Organize antenatal, under five clinics,
health education camps.
• Ability to manage Health Management +
Information System, including
maintenance of health records at
primary care level.
• Able to show effective leadership, +
supervision skill not only at primary
care level but also in inter-sectoral
coordination. +
• Ability to manage money, material and +
manpower at primary care level. +
• Ability to do cost benefit and cost
effective analysis as per primary care +
needs.
• Community participation and +
cooperation skills
10. Basic Laboratory investigation at
primary care level
• Hemoglobin estimation +
• Urine examination for normal and +
abnormal constituents.
• Thick and thin blood smear for malaria +
parasite examination
• Peripheral smear for type of anemia +
• Acid fast staining
• Hanging drop examination of stool +
sample.
• Estimation of Chlorine demand and +
Residual chlorine.
 • Identification of life cycle stages of +
various insects of public health
importance
11. Minor surgical procedures at
primary care level
• All types of injection techniques +
• Common wound dressings +
• Incision and drainage of abscess under +
local anesthesia
• Stitching of clean lacerated wounds +
12. First Aid, initiation of emergency +
care, Triage and referral
13. Transportation of injured and +
seriously ill patient from site of
first contact. community.

Field Visits for Undergraduate medical students:

1. Family Health Advisory Services*
2. Clinico-Social case review*
3. Sub centre, Primary Health Center and Community Health Center/ District Hospital
4. Anganwadi Centre
5. Water, sewage treatment & waste management plant
6. Industry visit
7. Infectious Disease Hospital
8. DOTS Center
9. Malaria Clinic
10. School Health.
11. Milk/ Dairy board,
12. Voluntary Counseling & Testing Center (VCTC)
13. Old Age Home,
14. Rehabilitation Center

*Both these visits are part of community/family orientation posting, as a

compulsory community medicine posting. Family and hospital visits are for
development of various skills in community and hospital settings

METHOD OF ASSESSMENT:
• Modified essay question,
• Short answer questions
• MCQs
• Problem solving exercises
• OSCE, OSPE, OSLER
• Epidemiological Exercise,
• Records Review.
• Checklist,
• Research Project reports &
• Oral Viva Voce

TEACHING LEARNING METHODS:

• Structured interactive sessions
• Small group discussion
• Focused group discussion (FGD)
 • Participatory learning appraisal (PLA)
• Family and community visits
• Institutional visits
• Practical including demonstrations
• Problem based exercises
• Video clips
• Written case scenario
• Self learning tools
• Interactive learning
• e-modules

TIME OF EVALUATION:
Examination of Community Medicine should be at the end of 7th 9th semester and
formative and summative assessment during internship so that we have a basic doctor
competent to provide primary care.

LEARNING RESOURCE MATERIALS

• Text books
• Reference books
• Practical note books
• Internet resources
• Video films etc.

SUGGESTED TOPICS FOR LEARNING THROUGH e-MODULES

1. History of Medicine and Public Health

2. Environmental health
3. Nutrition (Except public health nutritional program)
4. Epidemiological methods
5. Screening
6. Planning cycle
7. Health Management techniques
8. Entomology
9. Biostatistics
10. Demography
11. Disaster management
12. Bio-medic al waste management
13. International health
14. National health organizations

TOPICS FOR INTEGRATED TEACHING WITH DEPARTMENT OF

COMMUNITY MEDICINE AS PARTICIPANT

1. Nutrition
2. Iron deficiency anemia
3. Communicable diseases with National Health programme like
a. HIV/AIDS
b. Tuberculosis
c. Malaria
 d. Polio
e. Diarrhoeal diseases
f. Leprosy
g. Zoonotic diseases
4. Lifestyle related diseases with preventive aspects like
a. Diabetes
b. Hypertension
c. Stroke
d. Obesity
e. Cancers
5. Jaundice
6. Alcoholism
7. Death and Dying
8. Geriatric medicine
9. Adolescent Health
10. Rational drug use
11. Contraception
12. Industrial health
13. Ethical issues

TOPICWISE MARKS DISTRIBUTION IN COMMUNITY MEDICINE

PAPER-I
TOPIC MARKS ALLOTED

Concept of Community Medicine 5

Sociology 5

Environment including entomology 10

Biomedical waste
Occupational Health

Nutrition 10

Basic Epidemiology 10

Health Promotion and Education 10

Demography and Biostatistics 10

TOTAL 60

PAPER-II

Communicable and non communicable disease epidemiology 25

RCH & NRHM 10

Health planning, Management, Financing 5

Health care delivery system, Urban Health 10

Disaster management 10
Health legislation
Care of elderly
Mental Health
International Health
TOTAL 60

EACH PAPER SHOULD HAVE:

A. Structured essay one question 10 marks
B. Remaining structured short essay question 50 divided marks
C. Around 50% problem based competency testing (cognitive domain) in theory question
paper
D. Each paper shall be of 90 minutes duration
DISTRIBUTION OF MARKS
TOTAL MARKS: 300

THEORY 150

Two papers (60 x 2) 120

Internal assessment (20%) 30

PRACTICAL 150

Internal assessment (20%) 30

Viva 20
OSCE (10 X 5) 50
OSPE (5X5) 25
Exercise 15
Family folder/ Project 10

Recommended Books In Community Medicine:

1. Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine by K Park 19th edition

2. Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine by Gupta & Ghai
3. Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine by Gupta & Mahajan
4. Essentials of Community Medicine by Suresh Chandra
5. Introduction to Biostatistics by Sathya Swaroop
6. National Health Programme by Jugal Kishore
7. National Health Programme by D K Taneja
8. Textbook of Preventive & Social Medicine by Sunder Lal, Adarsh, Pankaj.
9. Textbook of Preventive & Social Medicine by T. Bhaskar Rao.
10. Public Health & Preventive Medicine By J. M. Last.
11. Biostatics by A. Indrayan
12. Methods in Biostatics by B.K.Mahajan

EVALUATION:
1. MANY COLLEGES SUGGESTED EVALUATION IN COMMUNITY MEDICINE TO BE DONE AT
THE END OF 9TH SEMESTER, WITH OTHER MAJOR CLINICAL SUBJECTS.
2. SUGGESTION RECEIVED FOR TWO PAPERS, AS WAS EARLIER, KEEPING IN MIND
VASTENESS & NEED OF THIS SUBJECT.
3. TOTAL MARKS SUGGESTED VARIED FROM 200 TO 400, WITH ALMOST EQUAL
DISTRIBUTION OF THEORY & PRACTICAL.