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Projects
SEGH is working on a variety of projects in order to raise awareness and provide more opportunities for students in the area of Global Health. Click on a project in the menu below to learn more!
Hagley Gap Jamaica Project HMP 690 Course in China International Internships Professional Development SEGH-Way Newsletter Global Health Students Network
Students Engaged in Global Health (SEGH) is excited to offer SPH students the opportunity to participate in a campus-wide public health project in Jamaica. In collaboration with the schools of Medicine, Business, Engineering, and Dentistry, SPH students will travel to the Hagley Gap region of Jamaica and provide safe water services to local residents. Selected students will be tasked with: 1) Fundraising expenses of the trip (there are many financial resources on campus); 2) Developing a specific research design in collaboration with students from the other programs; and, 3) Traveling to Jamaica for 1-2 weeks in May to implement the research project.
The specific research project is two-fold: 1) Test the safety of the water; and, 2) Educate the community about the importance of clean water. It is up to the individual students to refine those goals and determine exactly how to go about satisfying those objectives. Dr. Stuart Batterman of the EHS Department has agreed to act as the faculty sponsor for this project. He will be providing students advice and guidance during the research design and fund raising activities.For more information, see the 2008 Students for Jamaica Annual Report, available here (pdf).
Winter 2008 was the first term that the HMP 690 course focusing on the Chinese health system was offered. It was created by members of SEGH and Professor Jersey Liang from the HMP department to give students at SPH the opportunity to gain an understanding of a health care system that's very different from the one in the US. The first year's area of focus was on the potential for microinsurance plans in China. Our proposal was as follows:
"The concept of microinsurance has been receiving increasing attention over the past several years. Microinsurance is a financial arrangement to protect low-income people, and characterized by low premiums and low caps/coverage. It alleviates the problem of providing protection of medical expenses for rural populations, who usually face barriers to accessing health services. Insurance plays an integral role in improving access to health care through better organization and quality of health care provisions and promotion of general welfare and social integration of members. The overwhelming majority of people in developing countries are suffering from the lack of this type of social safety net. This course examines micro-insurance schemes in developing countries, with a special emphasis on rural provinces in China. As part of the project objectives, we will identify challenges facing the rural populations in China and explore current health financing initiatives that are under government consideration, research current strategies of a relevant existing microfinance institution in China and explore the feasibility of offering a microinsurance package through this particular institution, complete a cost-benefit analysis to insure a group of rural persons in 1-2 provinces by interviewing international insurance companies, examine other successful microinsurance models administered in various countries, and deliver final recommendations on the benefits and policy implications of implementing this particular model in China. The course will culminate with a 10 day trip to one or two selected provinces in China in May 2008. "
We spent the Winter term conducting a literature review of microinsurance and health care in China, as well as working on raising funds for the experiencial learning component, which consisted of two weeks in China, meeting with doctors, hospital administrators, and professors at universities and research institutes. See the PDF below for a full review of our findings over the course of the study tour:
Here are a couple video clips from the trip. The first one is of Dr. Liang discussing health care with the SPH students outside Bei Da Hospital in Beijing, and the second is from the day trip we took to the Great Wall!
Many students who are interested in careers in Global Health will be interested in international internship opportunities. There are a lot of opportunities out there, but tracking them down, and raising the funds to do them, can be difficult. To help students land internships that best fit their interests, we are putting together a panel discussion on how to go about finding and preparing for internships abroad. We're also connecting first-year students with second-year students who interned abroad, who can act as mentors and offer tips and advice.
In order to help students find jobs in the field, we are working to develop meaningful profesisonal development opportunities. These include guest speakers, meetings with professors and professionals working in the field, chances to meet with recruiters, and more.
One of the goals of SEGH is to move the conversation at UM-SPH toward global issues. One of the ways we do this is through SEGH-Way, our weekly newsletter. This newsletter contains information about what's new at SEGH, details for upcoming events that draw attention to Global Health, and articles and useful resources that will help raise awareness of the issues. These resources are also posted on our blog.
Please contact us if you would like to receive the email newsletter.
We are working to create a network of Global Health students and student organizations. In order to do this, we've been reaching out to student groups at SPH and other schools, including the Medical School, Ford School of Public Policy, and undergraduate departments. We've also incorporated the interdeciplinary ideals of Public Health into the organizational structure of SEGH by creating a team of students from each of the five departments at SPH, which will allow us to address issues from multiple angles.