Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda, but homosexuality is also illegal in 69 other countries worldwide, and the practice of labeling […]
The beauty of competency-based education (CBE) is that it is fluid and flexible, promoting critical application of the course material with a focus on what students should be able to do, as opposed to a singular emphasis on knowledge. The ability of CBE to produce graduates who are competent professionals has made the approach increasingly popular among various health fields. In fact, The Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH), the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), and the Canadian Medical Education Directives for Specialists (CanMEDS) have all developed core competencies for their programs.
During this, the 19th annual National Public Health Week, let’s consider the definition of global health that appeared in The Lancet, “Global Health is Public Health.” What students will soon learn upon beginning their CFHI experience is the important reality that in many low and middle-income countries the lines they envision between public health and biomedicine are very much blurred. This is largely out of necessity demanded by sparse or finite resources, and evidence-based.
Uganda is a country in Sub-Saharan East Africa facing serious health problems and challenges, including high rates of maternal mortality, HIV and child malnutrition. Through CFHI, students from all academic backgrounds and levels have the opportunity to work closely to learn first-hand about child and maternal health, HIV, malnutrition prevention and rehabilitation, food security, sustainable agriculture, empowerment of women’s groups, micro-credit savings and community mobilization.
Nothing can beat that kind of immersion; nothing can beat waking up in a tiny mountain village everyday at 5:30AM with my fellow travelers to do yoga, or getting woken up in the hospital by a nurse to aid in a delivery or assist in the emergency department. India left a lasting impression – one that no doubt will shape my medical career, but also my personal life. It left me wanting to..
At the recent NAFSA conference CFHI paused to reflect on the role of social justice in health. Social Justice has been studied as one of the key ethical principles for students wanting to be involved in Global Health. Increasingly there has been discussion on whether social justice should be a factor when selecting students for admission into medical school.
Often the global health dialogue is dominated by Western voices. IFMSA allows 1,000+ medical students from around the world to work face-to-face twice a year. It democratizes global health and allows for crucial relationship development that is necessary for a unified global advocacy voice for health equity and justice. During the IFMSA alumni meeting attendees praised CFHI for its gold-standard model for global health education. Colleagues from Ghana, Serbia, Philippines, Nigeria, and beyond approached me with gratitude for CFHIs important advocacy voice in the global health education field.
FSM students go above and beyond the call of the program and support CFHI & Northwestern University School of Medicine Project training for parteras, or traditional midwives. Throughout the year students raise money to contribute towards a 5-day training for over 30 traditional midwives who attend over 40% of the births in the region.
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