Table 1
Details about the course structure and delivery.
Figure 1
Details about the course structure, modes of delivery, milestones, deliverables and assessment methods.
Table 2
Details about the week‑wise course topics and milestones.
| WEEK | TOPIC | MILESTONES |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to infectious disease epidemiology | – |
| 2 | Setting up compartmental models | – |
| 3 | Excel and math basics | – |
| 4 | Introducing demography and age structure into the model | Milestone 1: Submission of the first assignment by week 4 |
| 5 | R0, herd immunity and effect of vaccination | – |
| 6 | Effect of control measures or interventions | Milestone 2: Submission of the second assignment by week 6 |
| 7 | Stochastic models and incorporating non‑random mixing | – |
| 8 | Modelling other diseases: HIV, TB, malaria, COVID‑19 | Milestone 3: Submission of the third assignment by week 8 |
| 9 | Online revision and discussion forum | – |
| 10 | Online revision and discussion forum | Milestone 4: Submission of the third assignment by week 10 |
| 11 | Online revision and discussion forum | Milestone 5: Submission of the project work by week 11 |
| 12 | Contact session and exit examination | Passing the exit examination |
[i] HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; TB, tuberculosis; R0, basic reproduction number; COVID‑19, coronavirus disease 2019.
Table 3
Challenges and recommendations for future Infectious Disease Modelling courses.
| TOPIC | CHALLENGES/SUGGESTIONS | ACTION PLANNED FOR SUBSEQUENT COURSES |
|---|---|---|
| Pre‑reading materials | Pre‑reading materials before some of the sessions | Pre‑reading materials will be collected and circulated before the sessions |
| Timing of the sessions | Attending evening online lectures was challenging for the working professionals | In the subsequent courses, a web‑based course portal will be designed wherein lecture videos and other resource materials will be uploaded and the participants can complete the course at their own pace |
| Recorded lecture videos | Non‑availability of recorded lecture videos | A web‑based course portal will be designed wherein recorded lecture videos will be uploaded |
| Focus on basics of infectious diseases | Basics of infectious diseases should be discussed more thoroughly, especially for the non‑medical participants | More lectures and reading materials will be included to cover the basics of common infectious diseases in the first 2 weeks |
| Difficult topics | Disease‑specific modelling topics such as HIV, TB and STIs needs more time and discussion | We will revisit the lectures and add some case studies and exercises to elaborate on disease‑specific modelling |
| Course content | More exercises, quizzes, case scenarios, journal clubs | We will add more exercises for practice, quizzes at the end of every 2 weeks and some real case scenarios for discussions |
[i] HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; TB, tuberculosis; STIs, sexually transmitted infections.