This summer, three MIDP fellows had the opportunity to participate in the Duke Global Health Institute’s intensive summer training course: One Health Training Program. The program offers an international and interdisciplinary public health framework that “explores how the health of the environment, animals, and humans are all connected.”
MIDP candidates Kemal Kabeto, Victoria Clemens, and Jordan Velie took the course, which emphasizes the importance of international collaboration in public health interventions.
Kabeto (pictured) shares his experience in the program:
“I am from Ethiopia, and as a graduate international development policy/global health student here at Duke I have always wanted to educate myself and then find ways to give back to underserved communities here at home or abroad. This is my biggest motivator in my life and why I applied to the MIDP program.
One of the biggest developmental challenges facing the people in my home country and surrounding areas of the Sub-Saharan East Africa region is the high rate of infectious diseases. Despite the recent development efforts and growth agendas in this region of the world, circumstances are still dire when it comes to both the high rate of life-threatening infectious disease outbreaks, and the health policy issues surrounding the prevention and control.
I found this intense training program to be a very good complement to my ongoing education in the MIDP program. The combination of the two has improved my analysis skills related to health policy issues, especially when it comes to prevention and control of public health issues.
This program brought together public health doctors, veterinary medicine professionals, environmental experts, and other interdisciplinary expertise from across the world. I also found the compassion and eagerness of the program director, Dr. Greg Gray, made a difference for all of us trainees. I cannot go by without mentioning Jane Fieldhouse, Laura Borkenhagen, Emily Bailey, and others who were coordinating the program and tirelessly engaged throughout the training period.
This was a great experience, and I am grateful for the opportunities for cross-disciplinary training that Duke offers.”
