Section: Module 1: Lesson 1: Introduction to COPC | Community-Oriented Primary Care | NextGenU.org
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Learning Objectives:
Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to:- Understand the history and practice of COPC.
- Discuss the meaning and scope of the Five Principles of COPC.
- Analyze the methodology of the Six Steps of COPC.
- Understand the definition and meaning of community and the value of community participation within the COPC process.
Click here to start this lesson-
Students mustView
Download the PDF file. Then, read the entire article titled "On “A Practice of Social Medicine” by Sidney and Emily Kark." Dr. Jaime Gofin, a colleague and member of the Kark team, elaborates on their work and also offers further context and historical information.
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Read the entire article titled "Community-Oriented Primary Care: A Path to Community Development." Dr. H Jack Geiger details COPC in Mississipi in the United States during the 1960s, another important era for understanding COPC today.
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Students mustView
Read this article, titled "Community-Oriented Primary Care: Historical Perspective." It offers a good overall summary of COPC from a historical perspective and will give you a basic theoretical understanding of COPC.
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Read this entire summary of an interview titled "Dr. Jaime Gofin on Community Oriented Primary Care (COPC)" to understand the principles of COPC in context.
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Scroll down and read the section titled "COPC Defined" for a general understanding of the COPC process. This process will be referenced throughout the course.
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Students mustView
Scroll down and under the heading titled "Activities and Modules" click on the link titled "Module 1 - Introduction to COPC". Read through the slides for a general understanding of the COPC process. Lecture notes are available for download.
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Read the entire article titled "What Is Community? An Evidence-Based Definition for Participatory Public Health" for an evidence-based definition of community.
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Students mustView
In this individual exercise, you will identify a local community of your choice and establish a relationship with one of its mentors.
Step 1: Read the article from MacQueen et al. (2001) titled “What Is Community? An Evidence-Based Definition for Participatory Public Health.” This article defines community as: “a group of people with diverse characteristics who are linked by social ties, share common perspectives, and engage in joint action in geographical locations or settings.” Using what you know about communities, identify a community you would like to work with. This may be a community you know well (such as the neighborhood or village you grew up in) or one that you do not know that well but is close by to where you currently live. It might also be a clinic or school.
Step 2: Identify a community mentor within the community you chose, whom you will be in contact with throughout the entire course. The community mentor should be someone who works in the field of health services, but she/he does not necessarily have to have prior experience with COPC. Throughout this course, as you become more knowledgeable about COPC, your community mentor will serve as your main liaison to this community, helping you to understand its needs and concerns.
Step 3: Ask your mentor to register with NextGenU and supply them with a copy of the "COPC community mentor guide."
Step 4: Write an attestation stating that you have secured a mentor, and submit it for your mentor to grade.
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Students mustViewStart discussions: 1Post replies: 1Make forum posts: 2
In this activity, you will interact with your mentor to understand the community and its needs and share your findings with your peers
Step 1: Set up a time to speak with your community mentor about your community of choice. Prior to that meeting read the lecture notes titled “Collecting Ethnographic Data: The Ethnographic Interview” for a better understanding of how to interview your community mentor.
Step 2: Conduct the interview. Have your mentor show you around the community and introduce you to some of its members. In this exercise (and throughout the entire course) it is crucial that you broaden your knowledge-base and listen to the experiences of your mentor and the needs of the community. You will need to cover the questions outlined below plus any additional questions you may have.
- What is your mentor's role in the community?
- What are the health problems the community has?
- What are the most important needs of the community?
Step 3: After the meeting, summarize the interview in 250 to 500 words (it may help to take notes during your interview). Answer the questions above and describe your chosen community. Explain why you chose this mentor and why her or his perspective is useful. If you have personal connections to the community (such as growing up there or having a family member who lives there), explain those as well. Also, be sure to describe what you did not expect or what surprised you about the community.
Step 4: Submit your assignment for peer review by clicking “add a new discussion topic” below and completing the fields.
Step 5: Review the work of one of your peers by asking yourself the questions listed below and comment on their post stating that their post meets these requirements.
- Did my peer describe their chosen community? Did they describe their mentor and their involvement within the community?
- Did my peer detail the most important needs and health problems of the community?
- Did my peer explain why they chose this mentor and why her/his perspective on the specific community is useful?
- Did my peer explain their personal connections to the community (if any)?
- Did your peer summarize the interview in 250-500 words?
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Quiz: Module 1 Lesson 1To access the quiz, click on the name of the quiz provided above. On the following screen, click the "Preview quiz now" button to respond to the questions
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Download the PDF file. Then, read this book chapter (reproduced in Social Medicine) titled "A Practice of Social Medicine." Sydney and Emily Kark are the original pioneers of the COPC approach.
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Read the article titled "Community-Oriented Primary Care: The Missing Link." This article explores what it means to be a community-oriented practitioner.
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Read the article titled "Pioneering Community-Oriented Primary Care". This commentary reviews the work of Sydney and Emily Kark. It is derived from a memorial lecture given by Professor M. Susser for Sydney Kark.
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"Community-Oriented Primary Care: An Examination of the US Experience" looks at 7 COPC case studies in the United States and examines the diversity of the principles and lessons learned.
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Read the article titled “Commentary: In Search of Innovative Approaches to International Health" for further examples and a better understanding of Kark's original philosophy. This article written by the founders of COPC, reviews the community health program at Aga Khan University in Pakistan from a historical context.
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Read "Handout 4-3: An Overview of Community-Oriented Primary Care" for an overview and definition of COPC.
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Students mustViewStart discussions: 1Post replies: 1Make forum posts: 2
Discuss the term “community” with your peers online and based on what you studied in this module, post your own definition of community. You should comment on at least one other posting, and if someone comments on your posting, you should respond back to them.