Master Of Public Health Research Articles

Public health physicians: here to help

Public health physicians: here to help

Public Health Ethics Education in a Competency-Based Curriculum: A Method of Programmatic Assessment

Public health ethics began to emerge in the 1990s as a development within bioethics. Public health ethics education has been implemented in schools of public health in recent years, and specific professionalism and ethics competencies were included in the Master of Public Health (MPH) competency set developed nationally and adapted by individual schools of public health around the country. The University of Texas School of Public Health approved the present set of MPH competencies in 2005. After 4 years of experience, we now report information measuring the extent to which “Professionalism and Ethics” competencies and subcompetencies are being met in the MPH degree program. To this end we have audited the MPH “Professionalism and Ethics” competency forms for FY2009 MPH graduates (n = 61). Eight courses, including required MPH core courses plus the practicum and culminating experience, were found to have substantial professionalism and ethics content. Further, 67.2% of graduates met eight or more of the 13 competencies and subcompetencies, but only 36.1% met all thirteen, indicating a need to identify topic areas to be added to, or enhanced in, the MPH curriculum. In addition, these findings will inform ongoing efforts to enhance ethics education in our health science center. Assessment of these competencies and subcompetencies is an essential step in strengthening ethics education at our institutions and in better preparing our graduates for a challenging future. We report our efforts here to demonstrate one way of carrying out programmatic assessment of ethics education in a school of public health.

Personal Reflections on Teaching Health Law in a School of Public Health

Peter D. Jacobson Introduction For the past 20 years, I have been teaching various law courses, mostly to public health students. At the RAND Graduate School, I taught two courses to Ph.D. candidates: one on law and social science, and then a course on law and epidemiology (co-listed with the UCLA School of Public Health). Each year since 1996 at the University of Michigan School of Public Health (UMSPH), I have been teaching health law to our Master of Health Services Administration (MHSA) candidates, and public health law to Master of Public Health (MPH) candidates.1 I also teach a seminar on health care regulations. In 2004, I taught health law at the Georgetown University Law Center as a visiting scholar. The non-law student audience presents a different set of challenges than does teaching law students, even though my UMSPH classes usually include at least one dual law/public health degree candidate (and an occasional law student). Teaching a multidisciplinary cohort with little prior exposure to law is an exciting challenge that offers many rewards. What follows are some observations about how to approach teaching health law to non-law students.2

Understanding Evaluation Training in Schools and Programs of Public Health

This study provides an understanding of how the coursework required for attaining a Masters of Public Health (MPH) degree in epidemiology or health education from accredited schools or programs of public health prepares students to evaluate programs or interventions. Study data were generated using a content analysis of required coursework documented on websites of academic institutions and an online survey of professors who instruct courses that focus on educating students about program or intervention evaluation. Information was abstracted from websites for over 1,000 required courses associated with completing an MPH degree in epidemiology or health education at 51 academic institutions. The survey response rate for courses with a primary focus on evaluation was 60.5% and for courses with a partial focus on evaluation was 39.8%. One academic institution required that students pursuing an MPH degree in epidemiology successfully complete a specific course that has a primary focus on program or intervention evaluation, less than 50% ( n = 21) of these academic institutions had this same requirement for health education students. Results suggest that course instructors were most likely to provide instruction on evaluation through lectures or required readings, indicating a general rather than an extensive level of engagement with this material. The extent to which students pursuing an MPH in health education or epidemiology are exposed to the basics of program evaluation appear to be out of alignment with the competencies outlined recently for public health professionals.

Designing a Master of Public Health Degree Within a Department of Pharmacy Practice

The demand for public health services is being outpaced by a shrinking public health workforce. This creates a unique opportunity for pharmacists to become more engaged in public health activities, particularly in rural underserved areas. To meet the need for additional public health professionals, we designed a master of public health (MPH) program in a rural state under the leadership of a department of pharmacy practice. In addition to a core set of courses, the MPH program has public health specialty tracks (disease state management, emergency management, health promotion practice, infectious disease management, food safety, gerontology, and medical management and administration) that could be completed as a certificate program or used towards an MPH degree. The program allows students to complete the graduate degree with a minimum of prerequisite coursework. The MPH degree provides an opportunity for pharmacists and other health care professionals to gain an understanding of the interprofessional approach to solving public health problems and will enhance their role in public health and within their health care team.

The Establishment of the School of Public Health at the State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center: The First Nationally Accredited School of Public Health in a Public University in New York City

The State University of New York (SUNY), Downstate Medical Center initiated a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree program in July 2001 following planning efforts that began in 1995. Twelve students entered the program in June 2002, and currently some 110 MPH students and 12 Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) students are enrolled. This article describes the long and complex process of transforming the original MPH degree program, with its single focus on urban and immigrant health, with a student enrollment of 12 and 8 full-time faculty, into a school of public health with a large student enrollment of 122 students, 25 full-time faculty, five MPH degree tracks, and four DrPH degree tracks. The process of establishing the SUNY Downstate School of Public Health in 2009 from its inception as an MPH program in 2001 spanned a period of 8 years. This process was guided by a commitment to two basic principles. The first was to maintain the original 2005 program accreditation by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). The second was to sequentially secure accreditation for all subsequent four MPH and four DrPH degree tracks through CEPH's procedure of substantive change approval. This policy assured continuous national CEPH accreditation of the original Urban and Immigrant Health MPH degree track and all added degree programs. The 5-year period following the initial CEPH accreditation of the MPH program in 2005 was one of intense development during which all of the essential elements for CEPH accreditation of a school of public health were put into place. This rapid development was made possible by the vision and full support of Downstate's president, John C. LaRosa, MD, FACP, and the dedicated efforts of many. This included the students, faculty, staff, and administrators of the School of Public Health, the school's Community Advisory Group, several external advisors, and many in the medical center's Central Administration, College of Medicine, School of Graduate Studies, College of Nursing, College of Health Related Professions, and the University Hospital of Brooklyn. From the very beginning of the planning phase for an MPH program and through the ultimate accreditation of the School of Public Health in 2010, broad participation was solicited from all major units in the medical center. Thus, the MPH program became a center-wide initiative and not merely that of the College of Medicine's Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health. This broad participation has been continuously maintained through the involvement of leaders of other medical center academic units and the University Hospital of Brooklyn in the program's and then the school's standing and ad hoc committees, and in other activities as well. Similarly, community representation has been maintained, some through formal linkages relevant to the practical field experiences required of all students. In October 2010, the Board of Councilors of CEPH accredited the SUNY Downstate School of Public Health for a 5-year period through 31 December 2015. The accreditation of the school was a major milestone for Downstate, Brooklyn, and New York City. The SUNY Downstate School of Public Health is the first CEPH accredited school of public health in the history of Brooklyn, and only the second such school in New York City. It is also the first CEPH accredited school of public health at a publicly supported university in New York City. The school has already had a major impact on improving the health and well-being of the people of Brooklyn through its numerous collaborative community-based health promotion and disease prevention programs.

Reflections on a Decade of Progress in Pharmacy Education: Reasons for Celebration

The profession of pharmacy recently passed a historic milestone that merits recognition, discussion, and celebration. I am referring to July 2010, which marked the passage of 10 years since all entry classes of pharmacy students were enrolled in doctor of pharmacy (PharmD)-only programs. Driven by the profession's aspirations for a larger role in health care, the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), a decade ago, began accrediting only pharmacy education programs that met its standards for the PharmD degree. The successful transformation of pharmacy education over the past 10 years is a tribute to the leadership of the administrators and faculty members at accredited colleges of pharmacy, the dedication of practitioners who take students under their wings for experiential instruction, the support of ACPE's 3 sponsors (American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, American Pharmacists Association, and National Association of Boards of Pharmacy), the guidance and advice of other pharmacy organizations, and the work of the board of directors, other volunteers, and staff members of ACPE. All of the colleges and schools of pharmacy in operation 10 years ago met the deadline for conversion from the bachelor of science (BS) degree to the PharmD entry-level (first professional) degree. This was an enormous achievement. It involved marshalling resources for an additional year of instruction and making significant changes in the content and structure of the curriculum, including the addition of introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPE) and expanded advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPE). Demonstrating immense ingenuity, many colleges and schools of pharmacy during this period pioneered new ways of applying their resources to meet the challenge of preparing new pharmacists for an expanded role in health care. These innovations included: Distance education, both synchronous and asynchronous Creation of branch campuses (with or without distance education) 3-calendar-year curricula 2-plus-2 curricula Modular curricula organized by body organ system/disease states Integrated instruction in the biomedical, pharmaceutical, social/behavioral/administrative, and clinical sciences Team-based instruction Problem-based learning initiatives Service-learning initiatives Expanded use of high-tech simulation in teaching Facilitated dual-degree curricula (PharmD with master of business administration [MBA] degree, master of public health [MPH] degree, doctorate [PhD] degree, etc) This spirit of innovation among colleges and schools of pharmacy was supported by the revisions in the standards for pharmacy education that ACPE adopted in 2007. Examples of that support through revised standards include: Required interviews of student applicants as part of the admission process Greater use of active-learning techniques Outcomes-based assessment of student learning and curricular effectiveness Outcomes-based programmatic assessment Greater interprofessional instruction More curricular emphasis on medication safety, cultural competence, professionalism, and research principles Higher expectations for quality IPPEs and APPEs Accommodation of new areas of science in pharmacy, including pharmacoeconomics and pharmacogenomics Expanded use of portfolios to document faculty member and student progress and competencies Improved preparation of preceptors as educators, assessors of student competence, and innovators in practice Improved awareness of practice issues among science faculty members (stemming from shadowing experiences, increased dialogue with clinical colleagues, etc) More student involvement in college operations (committees, interviews, admissions process, etc) Notably, the ACPE now includes the Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) Vision for Pharmacy Practice in 2015 in the accreditation standards for both the evaluation of pharmacy degree programs and continuing education providers. The JCPP vision is: “Pharmacists will be the health care professionals responsible for providing patient care that ensures optimal medication therapy outcomes.” Everyone in the profession can take pride in the remarkable progress in pharmacy education over the past decade. The changes we have witnessed were anchored in standards, and the standards were linked to a vision of the future in which patients have improved health outcomes because pharmacists were there—with the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities—to help them. Let us pause to reflect and celebrate a decade of progress in pharmacy education. Our work is not done, of course, but our momentum is moving us in the right direction.

New competencies for public health graduates: a useful tool for course design

The objective of this paper is to provide a brief overview and context for the new Australian Network of Public Health Institutions (ANAPHI) Foundation Competencies for Master of Public Health Graduates in Australia, and to outline the current status of the quality agenda for public health training and competency standards for Master of Public Health (MPH) education in Australia. We summarise the complex history and process of developing competency standards for Master of Public Health courses in Australia, including the logic for a competency-based set of training guidelines. An abridged example of a competency and its underpinning knowledge is provided. This set of competency standards will be useful for MPH course designers, and critical to maintaining the standard of MPH courses in the current (and changing) health policy context, both in Australia and internationally.

State University of New York Upstate Medical University College of Medicine

State University of New York Upstate Medical University College of Medicine

Barriers to Evidence-Based Decision Making in Public Health: A National Survey of Chronic Disease Practitioners

Existing knowledge of evidence-based chronic disease prevention is not systematically disseminated or applied. This study investigated state and territorial chronic disease practitioners' self-reported barriers to evidence-based decision making (EBDM). In a nationwide survey, participants indicated the extent to which they agreed with statements reflecting four personal and five organizational barriers to EBDM. Responses were measured on a Likert scale from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating a larger barrier to EBDM. We analyzed mean levels of barriers and calculated adjusted odds ratios for barriers that were considered modifiable through interventions. Overall, survey participants (n=447) reported higher scores for organizational barriers than for personal barriers. The largest reported barriers to EBDM were lack of incentives/rewards, inadequate funding, a perception of state legislators not supporting evidence-based interventions and policies, and feeling the need to be an expert on many issues. In adjusted models, women were more likely to report a lack of skills in developing evidence-based programs and in communicating with policy makers. Participants with a bachelor's degree as their highest degree were more likely than those with public health master's degrees to report lacking skills in developing evidence-based programs. Men, specialists, and individuals with doctoral degrees were all more likely to feel the need to be an expert on many issues to effectively make evidence-based decisions. Approaches must be developed to address organizational barriers to EBDM. Focused skills development is needed to address personal barriers, particularly for chronic disease practitioners without graduate-level training.

Making the future ours in the occupied Palestinian territory

Health students worldwide are taught to protect people's health, which is not easy anywhere. Yet we, Palestinian Community and Public Health Master students living in the occupied Palestinian territory, have an even more difficult time.

Developing Global Public Health Links in Southeast Asia

At the end of 2009, the number of medical schools in Malaysia had exceeded 20 and there is every indication that this number, although large for a country of 28 million people, is likely to go up. However, very few medical schools engage in postgraduate programs due to lack of qualified staff and training facilities. Only 4 medical schools have a Master of Public Health (MPH) program. These medical schools are located in the University of Malaya (UM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). Of these 4, only 2 (UM and UKM) have a Doctor of Public Health Program and take in international students for their postgraduate degrees. The oldest and most established public health postgraduate degree program in Malaysia is run by the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine (popularly known as the SPM Department), University of Malaya, which is also the oldest academic public health department in Malaysia. Relative to public health departments in other universities in the Southeast Asian region, the SPM Department is small, with only 12 active academic staff and a further 9 staff who were still on study leave at the end of 2009. This small department delivers 2 general public health master’s programs, 4 specialty master’s in public health, a doctor of public health (DrPH), and PhD program and is the only department in UM’s medical faculty to maintain its own department Web site (http://spm.um.edu.my) since 1999. Since 1974, the SPM Department has produced 612 Master of Public Health and 106 Master in Medical Science (Public Health) graduates, in addition to a number of PhD graduates. Many of these graduates are international and increasingly international students make up a significant number of student intake. Currently half of its master’s and a quarter of its doctoral student intake every year are of international origin.

Engaging Key Stakeholders to Assess and Improve the Professional Preparation of MPH Health Educators

We described the process of engaging key stakeholders in a systematic review of requirements for a master of public health (MPH) degree within the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health, and summarized resulting changes. A benchmarking study of 11 peer institutions was completed. Key stakeholders (i.e., current students, alumni, faculty, staff, employers, and practicum preceptors) received online or print surveys. A faculty retreat was convened to process results and reach consensus on program revisions. MPH program changes included (1) improved advising and mentoring program, (2) elimination of research and practice track options, (3) increased elective and decreased required credit hours, (4) replacement of master's paper requirement with "deliverables" (written products such as reports, documents, and forms) produced as part of the required "Capstone" course, (5) extended community field experience to 2 semesters and moved it to year 2 of the program, and (6) allowed practica of either 200, 300, or 400 hours. Engaging key stakeholders in the program review process yielded important changes to the MPH degree program requirements. Others may consider this approach when undertaking curriculum reviews.

INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH: New MPH Program a First for India

Not often does a new degree program make headline news, but then, in India there is nothing entirely comparable to the new master’s of public health (MPH) program launched 19 January 2010 at Sri Ramachandra University (SRU) in Chennai. With environmental disease constituting roughly half the country’s total disease burden, India has a dire need of the expertise the program will develop with its focus on occupational and environmental health (OEH). “This program is the first MPH [in India] with an exclusive focus on OEH,” says Kalpana Balakrishnan, a professor of biophysics and head of the Department of Environmental Health Engineering at SRU. “These graduates will be trained in recognition, evaluation, and management of OEH risks to serve industry and governmental organizations in addition to assuming roles as teachers of OEH in [this and other] MPH programs.” India faces a double whammy of traditional and modern OEH problems, including indoor air pollution (primarily due to the use of wood, dung, and other solid fuels for cooking); the microbial and chemical contamination of water; chemical, physical, ergonomic, and psychosocial hazards in the workplace; and contamination of food supplies by heavy metals, pesticides, and microbes. Over 37 million people—more than the total population of California—are affected annually by waterborne disease, according to the international nonprofit WaterAid, and the most recent data available—published by James Leigh et al. in the September 1999 issue of Epidemiology—put the number of occupation-related deaths per year at an estimated 121,000. Yet the country, with one-sixth of humanity and a space program, nevertheless has few professionals trained to tackle such problems and inadequate capacity to undertake related research. The 2-year MPH program is the fruit of a collaboration with the University of California, Berkeley, that began in 2002 with support from the International Training and Research Program in Environmental and Occupational Health (ITREOH), an initiative of the Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, in collaboration with the NIEHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “A main objective of this collaboration has been to build the capacity of staff at SRU to deliver the MPH program and undertake research,” explains Kirk Smith, a professor of global environmental health at Berkeley and a principal investigator with ITREOH. Fogarty funds have brought 6 SRU faculty to Berkeley to take advanced courses in biostatistics, epidemiology, and other disciplines. Berkeley aims to continue to provide training support over at least the next 2 years. The new MPH program covers topics such as epidemiology, biostatistics, occupational toxicology, industrial hygiene, occupational and environmental safety, exposure assessment and control, health policy and management, behavioral sciences in health, indoor air quality, analysis of airborne chemical contaminants, occupational health clinics, environmental engineering (including the management of hazardous and biomedical waste), and the use of geographic information systems. With initial graduating classes of just 10 students, Balakrishnan says, “The intake will be expanded once a critical mass of teachers is produced from the first few batches.” She believes it could be at least a decade before much of a dent could be made in the subcontinent’s OEH problems and that to truly meet its challenge, India would need dozens more such programs. “It will be difficult in the short term to find students able to pay their own fees to attend until there are jobs available to make it seem worthwhile,” Smith says. “It’s a chicken-and-egg situation, which is one of the main reasons SRU needs to start small and build up slowly to a larger program.” Smith says other Indian universities are now considering offering new courses with OEH content, but one of the major problems they face remains the recruitment of staff capable of teaching in this area. “The production of the first ‘homegrown’ graduates who can specifically fill these positions, who have firsthand experience of India’s OEH problems, and who can begin research to find new ways of quantifying them and dealing with them will be a big step in the right direction,” he says. “Addressing India’s occupational and environmental health concerns is vital in the future of a healthy India,” remarks Sanjay Zodpey, director of the Indian Institute of Public Health and director of public health education for the Public Health Foundation of India, both in New Delhi. “The MPH program in collaboration with Berkeley will not only address the shortfall in trained manpower in occupational and environmental health, but also strengthen indigenous Indian research capacity in these areas.”

MPH Program Adaptability in a Competitive Marketplace: The Case for Continued Assessment

In the last several years, the number of Master of Public Health (MPH) programs has increased rapidly in the US. As such, MPH programs, particularly smaller-sized ones, need to critically examine how their programs are meeting the needs and preferences of local public health practitioners. To assist in this necessity, the University of New Hampshire conducted a comprehensive educational assessment of its effectiveness as a smaller-sized, accredited MPH program. The aim of the assessment was to review the MPH program from the perspective of all stakeholders and then to agree on changes that would contribute to the fulfillment of the program's mission, as well as improve program quality and reach. The program's stakeholders examined the following components: policy development and implementation; target audience; marketing strategies; marketplace position; delivery model; curriculum design; and continuing education. Though assessment activities explored a wide array of program attributes, target audience, curriculum design, and delivery strategy presented significant challenges and opportunities for our smaller MPH Program to remain competitive. The effort put forth into conducting an in-depth assessment of the core components of our program also allowed for a comparison to the increasing number of MPH programs developing regionally. Since public health practice is changing and the education of public health practitioners must be adaptable, we propose that a routine assessment of an institution's MPH program could not only meet this need but also assist with keeping smaller, unbranded MPH programs competitive in a burgeoning marketplace.

Education for Physician Clinical Researchers: Should One Size Fit All?

Education for Physician Clinical Researchers: Should One Size Fit All?

Expanding Roles of Healthcare Epidemiology and Infection Control in Spite of Limited Resources and Compensation

Data on the resources and staff compensation of hospital epidemiology and infection control (HEIC) departments are limited and do not reflect current roles and responsibilities, including the public reporting of healthcare-associated infections. This study aimed to obtain information to assist HEIC professionals in negotiating resources. A 28-question electronic survey was sent via e-mail to all Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) members in October 2006 with the use of enterprise feedback management solution software. The survey responses were analyzed using Microsoft Excel. Responses were received from 526 (42%) of 1,255 SHEA members. Of the respondents, 84% were doctors of medicine (MDs) or doctors of osteopathy (DOs), 6% were registered nurses, and 21% had a master of public health or master of science degree. Sixty-two percent were male (median age range, 50-59 years). Their practice locations varied across the United States and internationally. Two-thirds of respondents practiced in a hospital setting, and 63% were the primary or associate hospital epidemiologist. Although 91% provided HEIC services, only 65% were specifically compensated. In cases of antimicrobial management, patient safety, employee health, and emergency preparedness, 75%-80% of respondents provided expertise but were compensated in less than 25% of cases. Of the US-based MD and DO respondents, the median range of earnings was $151,000-$200,000, regardless of their region (respondents selected salary ranges instead of specifying their exact salaries). Staffing levels varied: the median number of physician full-time equivalents (FTEs) was 1.0 (range, 1-5); only about 25% of respondents had 3 or more infection control practitioner FTEs. Most professionals working in HEIC have had additional training and provide a wide, growing range of services. In general, only traditional HEIC work is compensated and at levels much less than the time dedicated to those services. Most HEIC departments are understaffed. These data are essential to advocate for needed funding and resources as the roles of HEIC departments expand.

Paving Pathways: shaping the Public Health workforce through tertiary education.

Public health educational pathways in Australia have traditionally been the province of Universities, with the Master of Public Health (MPH) recognised as the flagship professional entry program. Public health education also occurs within the fellowship training of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine, but within Australia this remains confined to medical graduates. In recent years, however, we have seen a proliferation of undergraduate degrees as well as an increasing public health presence in the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector.Following the 2007 Australian Federal election, the new Labour government brought with it a refreshing commitment to a more inclusive and strategic style of government. An important example of this was the 2020 visioning process that identified key issues of public health concern, including an acknowledgment that it was unacceptable to allocate less than 2% of the health budget towards disease prevention. This led to the recommendation for the establishment of a national preventive health agency (Australia: the healthiest country by 2020 National Preventative Health Strategy, Prepared by the Preventative Health Taskforce 2009).The focus on disease prevention places a spotlight on the workforce that will be required to deliver the new investment in health prevention, and also on the role of public health education in developing and upskilling the workforce. It is therefore timely to reflect on trends, challenges and opportunities from a tertiary sector perspective. Is it more desirable to focus education efforts on selected lead issues such as the "obesity epidemic", climate change, Indigenous health and so on, or on the underlying theory and skills that build a flexible workforce capable of responding to a range of health challenges? Or should we aspire to both?This paper presents some of the key discussion points from 2008 - 2009 of the Public Health Educational Pathways workshops and working group of the Australian Network of Public Health Institutions. We highlight some of the competing tensions in public health tertiary education, their impact on public health training programs, and the educational pathways that are needed to grow, shape and prepare the public health workforce for future challenges.

Training in clinical research in India

Sir, The article “Training in Clinical Research in India: Potential and Challenges”(1) is an eye opener. It exposes the reasons for the lack of quality and quantity of human resources in the Indian scientific community in the field of clinical research activities. We, being medical students, would like to add our views on the same. We believe that the medical curriculum needs to be revised especially in the wake of research-oriented teaching in the medical colleges. In India, as opposed to medical schools in developed countries like USA and UK, no stress is laid on the research activities and research experience. Though ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research), through STS (Short-Term Studentship) and KVPY (Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana) scholarship program by Department of Science and Technology, promote research activities at the undergraduate level, little efforts are done by the college or university management for the same. No emphasis is laid on the research interest and experience while selecting candidates for the postgraduation courses (MS or MD) in India. In contrast, in USA the research experience and papers published in journals are considered an important parameter by the Program Directors in conjunction with the good scores in USMLE (United States Medical Licensing Examination) to judge the credentials of the potential postgraduation candidates. As a result, the students spend considerable time in research activities during and after graduation to get into the better residency and fellowship programs and contribute significantly to clinical research. Though students in postgraduation in India are required to submit their thesis paper to qualify for degree, most do it as an obligation rather than out of interest. We believe that increased exposure given to medical students during their undergraduation course can substantially increase their interest in this field and can provide a solution to the lacuna of manpower in the clinical research activities. Moreover, postgraduate programs similar to Masters of Public Health (MPH), MSc in Global Health Science, Health Economics Research, etc., which attract a lot of doctors in USA and UK should be promoted by the universities in India. As there is no paucity in variety of patients in India, clinical-research-oriented doctors can easily gather and analyze a large pool of data. It will not only contribute significantly to evidence-based medicine including increased knowledge of risk factors, presentations, progression, diagnosis, effective low-cost treatment, prevention strategies of diseases but will also play a significant role in pharmacovigilance. It will help to enhance our understanding about diseases with respect to indigenous epidemiologic data rather than relying on foreign research and data. Thus medical practitioners can not only provide effective health care to the patients but also contribute to the help in the evolution of medicine in a larger perspective.

International Videoconferencing for Public Health Education

Background: Video-linking with other countries provides a low-cost vehicle for students to learn more about health issues of other cultures and reflectively discuss the public health promotion and education activities of those countries in real time. Purpose: This article presents a case study of international videoconferencing in the higher education setting. Methods: Undergraduate students enrolled in three different public health courses at East Carolina University (ECU) in Greenville, North Carolina, USA were linked with graduate students enrolled in the public health master's degree program at the Freie Universität (FU) in Berlin, Germany for two videoconference sessions during the fall semester of 2008. A pre-post knowledge scale was administered to assess the impact of the learning modality with the student participants. Results: Utilizing this technology for fostering intercultural communication proved to be an effective method of instruction for student participants. Discussion: Intercultural communication has become a marketable skill for future public health professionals, and incorporating these communications skills into professional preparation programs provides unique learning experiences for students. Translation to Health Education Practice: Videoconferencing technology provides learners with synchronous experience for interacting with other cultures furthers understanding about global perspectives. Today, globalization introduces challenges and opportunities for health educators. Moreover, increasing communication and fostering dialogue between the future public health leaders improves knowledge levels and ideas for resource utilization.