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.
At CUGH’s Annual Meeting last week in Washington, DC educators and students from over 60 countries met to discuss the global health landscape. Perhaps one of the most powerful and emotional sessions was one that captured power of reflection in global health education. Eight trainees from undergraduate to post-graduate levels read personal reflections on global health education experiences that affected them.
CFHI helps to identify community strengths, ingenuity, and passion. In close collaboration with local teams, CFHI creates programs and funds community health projects identified and carried out by local teams. This practice is based on the asset-based community development approach, formalized at Northwestern University.
