Columbia University - Index

Columbia University - Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health - Index

partnerships with international NGOs,
government agencies, and health
ministries in other countries. Over the
past year, students have traveled to 48
countries, collecting data, conducting
research, and providing health services
and training.
? Geoffrey Garst, MPH '08, an Environmental
Health Sciences student in
the Global Health track, is completing
a practicum through the Millennium
Villages Project with a team of researchers
based in the village of Sauri, Kenya.
While there, Geoffrey is organizing
villagewide surveys and assessments and
helping to train and educate community
health workers and school teachers, primarily
in the fi eld of malaria control.
? For her practicum experience, Sociomedical
Sciences student Kwanza Price
traveled to La Romana, Dominican
Republic, to conduct research on
pediatric adherence to an oral form of
highly active antiretroviral therapy
(HAART) for Columbia University's
International Family AIDS Program. In
addition to identifying socioeconomic
barriers to adherence, Kwanza explored
how the taste of liquid antiretroviral
drugs affects Dominican children's
willingness to take their medications.
" Not only did I gain an appreciation for
cultural understanding in a clinical
setting, but my practicum experience in
the Dominican Republic allowed me to
'rediscover' what I had learned in class.?
-Kwanza Price, MPH '07
FOCUS ON GLOBAL HEALTH
As disparities in health between wealthy and
poor nations continue to grow, confronting
public health issues at a global level has become
increasingly important. In response to
the need for professionals trained in global
health issues, a cross-disciplinary group of
Mailman School faculty, under the direction
of Pamela Collins, MD, MPH '97, assistant
professor of clinical Epidemiology and clinical
Psychiatry, developed the curriculum for
fi ve new disciplinary-based tracks in Global
Health. "This program encourages students
to delve more deeply into the complexities of
global issues and solutions,? says Dr. Collins.
"A key component of the tracks is a dynamic
global health core curriculum led by academics
and leaders in the fi eld, and a six-month
practicum in a resource-poor setting that
serves to bridge classroom learning and fi eld
experience.?
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