UGC-NET – Paper II: SOCIAL MEDICINE AND COMMUNITY HEALTH (Code: 81)
Exam Cycle: June 2026
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COURSE OVERVIEW
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Subject Name: SOCIAL MEDICINE AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
Subject Code: 81
Conducting Body: National Testing Agency (NTA)
Paper Type: Paper-II – SOCIAL MEDICINE AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
Total Marks: 200
Total Questions: 100 MCQs
Mode: Computer Based Test (CBT)
Duration: 3 Hours (Paper I + II combined)
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COMPLETE LIST OF UNITS
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Unit I: Evolution and Basic Concepts of Public Health/ Social Medicine and Community Health:
Unit II: Evolution of Health Policies and Health Services in India.
Unit III: General Epidemiology and Bio-statistics:
Unit IV: Social Sciences and Health.
Unit V: Epidemiology of Common Health Problems In India and National Health Programmes:
Unit VI: Basic Determinants of Health.
Unit VII: Demography, Family Welfare and RCH.
Unit VIII: Health Education/ IEC/ BCC and Information Technology in Health:
Unit IX: Health Systems Research, Planning and Management and Recent Advances in Public Health:
Unit X: International Health.
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UNIT-WISE DETAILED SYLLABUS
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Unit I: Evolution and Basic Concepts of Public Health/ Social Medicine and Community Health:
Topic 1: History of Social Medicine and Community Health
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Topic 2: History of Public Health and Its Milestones
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Topic 3: Comprehensive Health Care
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Topic 4: Social Development and Health
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Topic 5: Dimensions and Determinants of Health
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Topic 6: Concepts and Indicators of Health and Wellbeing
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Topic 7: Natural History of Disease
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Topic 8: Levels of Prevention
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Topic 9: Globalisation and Its Impact on Health
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Topic 10: Roles and Responsibility of State, Community and Private Sector in Health
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Unit II: Evolution of Health Policies and Health Services in India.
Topic 1: Health Committees and Development of Health Services in Independent India
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Topic 2: Constitutional Provisions, Federal Structure and Social Security
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Topic 3: National Health Policies (1983, 2002, 2017), Population Policy, Nutrition Policy,
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Topic 4: Policy on Indian Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy, 2002
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Topic 5: Important Health Legislations in India
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Topic 6: Health Infrastructure in India—Public, Private, and Charitable, Public Private Partnership(PPP)
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Topic 7: Health financing and Health insurance, Out of Pocket expenditure
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Topic 8: Civil society and Social Movements in Health
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Unit III: General Epidemiology and Bio-statistics:
Topic 1: Basic concepts and definitions in Epidemiology
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Topic 2: Types of epidemiology
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Topic 3: Uses of epidemiology
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Topic 4: Measurements in epidemiology
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Topic 5: Epidemiological Study Designs
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Topic 6: Screening and surveillance
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Topic 7: Validity of Screening and Diagnostic tests
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Topic 8: Causation , Association and Biases
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Topic 9: Investigation of an epidemic
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Topic 10: Basic concepts in Bio statistics
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Topic 11: Types of data and data sources for Public Health
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Topic 12: Sampling techniques and sample size estimation
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Topic 13: Probability and Tests of significance
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Topic 14: Data analysis, presentation and interpretation
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Unit IV: Social Sciences and Health.
Topic 1: Definition, Scope, Concepts and Significance of Social, Economic, Cultural and Behavioral factors on Health and Disease
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Topic 2: Social Theories of Causation of Disease
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Topic 3: Implications of Social Structure and Socio-economic Status for Health
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Topic 4: Political and Economic Aspects of Health
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Topic 5: Health Perceptions and Behavior
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Topic 6: Health Economics
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Topic 7: Qualitative Research Methodology
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Topic 8: Social Work Approach in Health Care
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Unit V: Epidemiology of Common Health Problems In India and National Health Programmes:
Topic 1: Communicable Diseases—Common, Emerging and Re-emerging diseases, Hospital acquired infections, Antimicrobial resistance
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Topic 2: Non-Communicable Diseases—Cardio-vascular diseases, Diabetes, Cancers, Rheumatic heart disease, Blindness, Mental Health, Occupational Diseases, Genetic diseases
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Topic 3: Accidents , Injuries and Disasters
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Topic 4: All National Health Programs and data sources.
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Unit VI: Basic Determinants of Health.
Topic a: Environment and Health
• Water and sanitation
• Environmental pollution and Health impacts
• Built environment and Housing
• Climate change and impact on health
• Waste management
• Hospital waste management
Topic b: Nutrition
• Ecology of malnutrition
• Assessment of Nutritional status
• Nutritional diseases and their management
• Food and nutrition security and related legislations
• National Nutrition programs
• Socio cultural aspects of nutrition
• Food safety, Food standards and related legislations
Topic c: Social determinants of Health
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Unit VII: Demography, Family Welfare and RCH.
Topic a: Demography and Family Planning
• Definition, concepts and indicators related to demography and family planning
• Demographic cycle
• Size, composition and distribution of India’s population
• Approaches and methods of contraception
• Evolution of National Family Welfare Program
• Social issues related to Family Planning
• Felt need and unmet need in Family planning
• Social marketing in family planning
• Counseling in Family planning
• PC and PNDT Act-1994
• MTP Act 1971
Topic b: Reproductive and Child Health
• Evolution of Maternal/ Reproductive and child Health programs
• Safe motherhood and essential newborn care with related schemes and programs
• Gender issues in women’s health
• Major health problems of children in India and related National Health Programs
• Adolescent health and related schemes and programs
• Rights of child and related schemes and Programs
• School Health Programme
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Unit VIII: Health Education/ IEC/ BCC and Information Technology in Health:
Topic 1: Concepts, objectives and approaches of health education
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Topic 2: Methods , modes and barriers of communication
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Topic 3: Planning, Management and Organization of health education programs
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Topic 4: E-medicine, Distance education and associated legal issues
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Topic 5: Role of media in Health Education
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Topic 6: E Health and m Health
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Unit IX: Health Systems Research, Planning and Management and Recent Advances in Public Health:
Topic 1: Health planning and management
• Operations Research
• System analysis
• Health Technology assessment
• Monitoring and Evaluation
Topic 2: Health Management Information System
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Topic 3: Medical and Social Audits
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Topic 4: Health teams and their management
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Topic 5: Human Resources in Health
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Topic 6: Role of Ayush in local Health traditions
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Topic 7: Health policy studies
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Topic 8: Quality assessment of Health Services- parameters and standards
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Topic 9: Ethics in Health Care
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Topic 10: National Institutes of Public Health Research and Training
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Unit X: International Health.
Topic 1: Health problems of developed and developing countries
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Topic 2: Health problems of South East Asia region
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Topic 3: International agencies in Health
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Topic 4: Emporiatrics
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Topic 5: Health for All approaches- Primary Health Care (1978) to Universal Health Coverage
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Topic 6: Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)
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EXAMINATION STRUCTURE
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Paper-II: Subject Specific Examination
- Total Questions: 100
- Total Marks: 200
- Question Type: Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
- Negative Marking: No
- Duration: 3 Hours (Combined with Paper I)
- Mode: Computer Based Test (CBT)
Additional Notes (if any):
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SYLLABUS SUMMARY
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Total Units: 10
Total Topics: 48
Subject: SOCIAL MEDICINE AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
Subject Code: 81
Exam Category: UGC-NET Paper-II
Source: Official NTA/UGC Syllabus
Status: “As per latest official syllabus”
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