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COVID-19: Tackling the Novel Coronavirus

What is COVID-19 and how might the outbreak affect you? Find out more about coronavirus and explore its worldwide implications.

236,114 enrolled on this course

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  • Duration

    3 weeks
  • Weekly study

    4 hours
  • Digital upgrade

    Free

Understand the emergence of COVID-19 and how we respond to it going forward

The world is paying close attention to the outbreak of novel coronavirus, following its emergence in December 2019 in Wuhan, China.

With the outbreak of a novel coronavirus declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation, people worldwide are working to address it.

On this course, you’ll learn the latest of what we know about COVID-19, presented by international experts.

The purpose of this course

This course is provided for personal use only and not for any commercial, professional medical or business purpose. All content and opinions presented throughout this course are for educational purposes only and do not constitute the provision of professional medical or public health advice.

You should not rely on the content of this course or other learners in place of professional advice from a regulated medical professional.

If you have any concerns about a particular health condition or COVID-19, please seek the most current medical and/or public health advice from a qualified medical practitioner.

LSHTM shall not be liable, to the maximum extent permitted by UK law, for any adverse or negative consequence arising from your reliance on the information contained in this course, or for any commercial use by a business or medical practitioner, including but not limited to loss of profit, loss of business, business interruption, or loss of business opportunity.

Please note that this course was produced in May 2020, and as such, some materials may contain out of date information due to the rapidly changing situation.

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Skip to 0 minutes and 7 seconds This course is terribly important because we are confronted with an unprecedented outbreak, a new virus, lots of uncertainties, an uncertain future. And it’s going to be very important that as many people as possible understand what is going on, what are the possibilities, and what we can do about it. We must make sure that every country is ready to diagnose as soon as possible when someone is infected and then take all the measures. It means also sharing information, transparency, and doing some research, research that will inform the response. Because this has to be a science-based response, as every response. And we don’t have all the information. The less uncertainty we have, the better we are equipped to deal with this epidemic.

What topics will you cover?

  • How COVID-19 emerged and was identified
  • How COVID-19 spreads
  • Public health measures for COVID-19 worldwide
  • What is needed to address COVID-19 going forward

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

Who is the course for?

Those working in or around health, or anyone interested in how we should respond to the outbreak.

The course is presented in English, with translations provided in Chinese, Spanish (ES), Portuguese (BR), French, Italian, Arabic and Swahili.

Who will you learn with?

Associate Professor and Deputy Director for Research for the UK-Public Health Rapid Support Team, The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Clinician, Researcher and Coordinator for the UK Public Health Rapid Support team based at The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Judith Glynn is professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. She teaches epidemiology and outbreak investigation

Senior epidemiologist and Deputy Director of Operations on the UK-Public Health Rapid Support Team.

Who developed the course?

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine is a world leader in research and postgraduate education in public and global health. Its mission is to improve health and health equity worldwide.

UK Public Health Rapid Support Team

The UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST) is delivered by Public Health England and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, funded by UK Aid from the Department of Health and Social Care. University of Oxford and King’s College London are academic partners. The UK-PHRST is the primary arm of the UK Government to provide and coordinate the UK’s public health response to outbreaks in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

What's included?

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine are offering everyone who joins this course a free digital upgrade, so that you can experience the full benefits of studying online for free. This means that you get:

  • Unlimited access to this course
  • Includes any articles, videos, peer reviews and quizzes
  • A PDF Certificate of Achievement to prove your success when you’re eligible
  • Learning on FutureLearn

    Your learning, your rules

    • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
    • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
    • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

    Join a global classroom

    • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
    • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
    • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

    Map your progress

    • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
    • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
    • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

    Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn

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