A very interesting week was had by both students and lecturers during the International Health Protection module. A wide range of globally important topics were covered, from communicable disease to climate change, and delivered by a range of speakers, many of whom had worked abroad in the field of health protection. Students particularly liked lectures that brought alive the history of diseases as well as those that put them firmly into an international context.
One of the most pleasing aspects of the week was the input of the students. This ranged from asking intelligent and probing questions to actually teaching the whole class about topics from their experience. Similar to the speakers, the students had often worked in or came from a variety of countries where health protection faces very different challenges to those faced in the UK. Their input was invaluable to give an authentic global flavour to the week.
The week concluded with student presentations on International Health Regulations. These were professional, of a high quality and were an indication of the journey that the students had been on during the week. Students were all confident in answering a wide range of questions posed after presentations (by both staff and students), questions they probably would have struggled with at the beginning of the week.
I thoroughly enjoyed engaging with the students and I hope they found the week as worthwhile as I did. I can honestly say I am looking forward to reading the assignments and seeing how students critically appraise the international response to recent public health emergencies of international concern (PHEIC) such as Ebola.
By Paul Fisher – Deputy Module Lead
