The Link Program: A Bridge Between Dalhousie and the International Medical University

August 12, 2011 jf255033 6 Comments

Nirmal Radhawa - Class of 2013

Getting adjusted to a new country can be difficult for anyone, but it can be especially challenging if you are also enrolled in medical school. This is a challenge Nirmal Randhawa knows firsthand.

Nirmal is an International Medical University (IMU) student who will be entering the Med 3 year of Dalhousie University’s medicine program this September. Her educational experiences are part of a partnership started in 1996 between the IMU in Malaysia and Dalhousie. This program involves IMU students completing 2.5 years of training in Malaysia before coming to Dalhousie to complete the final two years of undergraduate medical studies.

The purpose of this partnership is to increase student and educational capacity for IMU, and to increase Dalhousie’s international presence and multicultural experiences. As of May 2011, 66 IMU MDs have graduated from Dalhousie through the program.

However, it is not easy for IMUs to adjust to new students, new facilities, new professors and a new city. For this reason the IMU students take part in the Link Program, a bridging program overseen by the Global Health Office that helps IMU students adapt to new environments and allows them to participate in clinical training sessions. The program, which runs from May to August, is comprised of training and sessions ranging from communication skills to case practice sessions to ward experience.

Currently, Nirmal is participating in the Link Program, and the GHO spoke to her to see how things are going:

GHO – How has the Link Program been going?

Nirmal – The Link Program has been going great! I have learned so much and had the pleasure of meeting and working with so many great doctors, tutors and fellow medical students. I really like how everyone here would genuinely really like to see you succeed and so teaching here is based on encouragement and positive reinforcement. I am so much more confident in my skills as a future health professional and I keep learning more every day.

GHO – What sessions do you find most interesting?

Nirmal – I found the summer clinical experience postings to be the most interesting. All of us are anxious about what to expect when clerkship begins and so the postings were a great introduction to the Canadian health system, the hospital dynamics and what is expected of us as clerks.

GHO – Why do you think the Link Program is important for IMU students entering Med 3?

Nirmal – The Link Program has been such a blessing for us IMU students! The program touched on lots of topics that most medical students find tricky and taught us basic medical procedures that we hadn’t learned in IMU yet. It also brought us up to speed on topics that we didn’t learn in IMU so that we were on the same track as current Dalhousie medical students. Plus, prior to coming to Dalhousie, some of us had a 5 month break and some had an 11 month break, so the Link Program also served as a great, much needed refresher course. I’m so thankful that we’re given the opportunity to reboot before being thrown into clerkship!

GHO – In what ways has the Global Health Office been a good resource for you?

Nirmal – The Global Health Office staff really makes you feel cared for. So much effort has been put into making sure that we are comfortable and gaining as much as we can from this program. Being so far away from home, it’s great knowing that we have so many people here in the GHO looking out for us.

GHO – What are you looking forward to most come this September?

Nirmal – I like how medical students here are not treated as just medical students, but rather an equally important member of the medical team. I’m most excited about being in the hospitals and learning and contributing as part of a medical team, as well as getting a hands-on approach to the theoretical knowledge that we’ve learned. I’m also keen on meeting the rest of my classmates!

International Medical Graduates Clerkship Program: The Road to Practice

August 4, 2011 jf255033 3 Comments

Born in Germany to Syrian parents, Suha Masalmeh has been living in Halifax for 16 years. Despite having a degree in medicine from outside the country, she is unable to practice in Canada because the road to licensure is so timely and expensive. For International Medical Graduates (IMG), it is extremely difficult to obtain a residency seat here.

However, now that Suha has been accepted into the IMG Clerkship Program at Dalhousie University, she is well on her way to obtaining a residency seat through the Canadian Residency Matching Service (CaRMS). IMG clerkship is a program that helps keep valuable immigrant physicians in Nova Scotia, and Suha says she is looking forward to taking part in it.

“I am really excited about the program and the various clinical experiences I will encounter throughout the years,” she says. “I look forward for the clerkship linked with great hands-on experience.”

The program began in 2008 and accepts two applicants each year. They enter Med 3, graduate after Med 4, complete their residency and then practice in Nova Scotia for at least two years under a Return of Service contract. The program is overseen by Dalhousie’s Global Health Office, and Suha says the office has been a great resource for her.

“The staff of the GHO was extremely valuable in helping me go through program details, schedule and any information needed,” she says. “They helped simplify some complex issues along the road. Great communication all the time.”

Suha has also played a hand in developing the IMG clerkship program when she was the president of the Association of International Physicians and Surgeons of Nova Scotia. During this time she advocated for IMGs and engaged in dialogues with various groups about the IMG clerkship program. But now it is Suha’s time to go through the program and once again practice her profession.

“The program would allow me to wipe the acronym IMG,” she says. “I really missed being a physician.”

Currently, Suha is taking part in the Link Program, which is a bridging program that helps international students get up to speed with training sessions while getting them familiar with the faculty and facilities. Her clerkship begins in September.

IYIP Interns Embark on South African Voyage

July 11, 2011 jf255033 2 Comments

Erin MacIver (left) and Antoinette Davis are embarking on the research opportunity of a lifetime. The two are travelling to Pretoria, South Africa this summer to participate in a five-month International Youth Internship Program (IYIP) with the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC).

The interns will assist HSRC’s Human and Social Development program and the HIV/AIDS, STIs and TB program. They will work on research projects dealing with sex and gender-based analysis and the social and ecomonic determinants of health. South Africa is heavily burdened by diseases such as HIV/AIDS and by severely under-resourced health services.

Antointette has high expectations for the experience, saying that she hopes to “further my experience with gender-based analysis, put into practice my theoretical knowledge, and learn from some amazing professionals in my field.”

The program is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency and developed through a partnership between HSRC, the Atlantic Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health and the Global Health Office at Dalhousie University.

Antoinette considers herself fortunate to be able to travel to South Africa and believes the program is “engaged in some really fascinating HIV and AIDS research work.” Antoinette and Erin will be in Pretoria from early July to early December.

Read Antoinette’s blog about her experiences here: http://idsgradonthemove.wordpress.com/

Read Erin’s blog about her experiences here: http://eemaciver.wordpress.com/

Building Capacity: Residents to Return Home to Rwanda

June 23, 2011 jf255033 Leave a Comment

Dr. Christian Mukwesi and Dr. Theoneste Mwumvaneza sit with Abena Amoako-Tuffour, coordinator of the Global Health Office of Anesthesia

Dr. Christian Mukwesi, Abena Amoaka-Tuffour (GHOA) and Dr. Theoneste Mwumvaneza

The 1994 Rwandan genocide was one of history’s most horrible events, killing about a million people and leaving the country in disarray for years after. Following the devastation, there was only one anesthesiologist for the entire population. Clearly there was a medical crisis that needed to be addressed, and this was the impetus for the partnership between Rwanda and the Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society International Education Foundation (CAS IEF).

In 2006, Canadian anesthesiologists began teaching in Rwanda so that the country could build capacity in training their own anesthesiologists. As of 2011, there are ten Rwandan anesthesiologists residing in the country who not only practice but also teach other anesthesiology residents.

In 2010, the program sent two Rwandan residents to Halifax to complete part of their residency at Dalhousie University. The residents work closely with the Global Health Office of Anesthesia, whose creation was supported by the Global Health Office at Dalhousie.

This year, Dr. Theoneste Mwumvaneza, a fourth-year resident at the National University of Rwanda, and Dr. Christian Mukwesi, a third-year resident, are at Dalhousie for the six-month residency program.

Despite struggling through the cold Canadian weather, Dr. Christian Mukwesi has found his experiences here to be enriching:

GHO: What are your thoughts now that you are finishing up your residency at Dalhousie?

Dr. Christian Mukwesi: It has been a pleasure to do this 6 months-elective at Dalhousie University. I first thank CASIEF for its will to strengthen the anesthesia postgraduate program in Rwanda through the strong partnership which has been built for these past 5 years.

GHO: How was your experience in Halifax?

Dr. Christian Mukwesi: I personally enjoyed my time in Halifax, especially in the operating rooms and in Intensive Care Unit where I discovered an implemented and coordinated system of working that included team work, high level of communication and maintaining standards. It was again in these areas I found people who could welcome and apply any change in the system that could improve a lifestyle of health providers or can benefit a patient.

GHO: Did you find it cold?

Dr. Christian Mukwesi: The weather is a big subject in all Canada and was difficult for me, but it was amazing to see how Canadians are prepared to deal with the cold, the storm in the way of dressing clothes, of building their houses. This kind of thinking was applied before me in the hospital that the health providers were prepared everyday to deal with easy and difficult cases.

GHO: What are your thoughts on the program?

Dr. Christian Mukwesi: My overall impression from my 6 months of experience in Canada is favorable for I gained knowledge, excellent approaches, secrets and good techniques from different anesthesiologists I had the opportunity to work with.
Anesthesia team and its administrative board showed respect for me, providing for my needs and treating me as equals, that I am deeply grateful for their kind of hospitality.

GHO: Did you find working here much different than in Rwanda?

Dr. Christian Mukwesi: One of my impressions when I started to work in the operating rooms at Victoria General hospital or Halifax Infirmary was to realize how different the west system is from our system, [which is} full of failures for many reasons. But, I believe that for someone who understands, failure is only the opportunity to more intelligently begin again.

GHO: What is your overall impression of the experience?

Dr. Christian Mukwesi: It was an opportunity to have a vision of what is done here with lots of resources and what will be done in the future for our region and think about making difference with few resources. Yes, we can.

The two residents will complete their Halifax placement by July, 2011. They will then take their new skills and experiences back to Rwanda, further building the country’s capacity in anesthesia.

Global Outreach Course: Anesthesia in Challenging Environments

June 9, 2011 jf255033 10 Comments

by Abena A-Tuffour from the Global Health Office of Anesthesia

Try and learn the language. Aim for quality over quantity. Be prepared to ‘look a fool’. These are a few of the lessons Dr. Sarah Hodges has learned while working in Uganda. Dr. Hodges, a UK-trained anesthesiologist, presented at the 2011 Anesthesia in Challenging Environments Global Outreach Course for the first time. Her presentation aimed to stimulate discussion about why people want to work abroad and how best to approach such missions.

So was the nature of the course: honest, social and packed with demonstrations and practical advice on practicing and teaching anesthesia in challenging environments.

The four-day course, held May 21 – 25, brought together 25 presenters and 35 participants from the UK, the US, Uganda, Indonesia, New Zealand and Canada. One repeat participant and presenter described some of the presentations as “a wake-up call.” Lauren Zolpys, a 2nd year Dalhousie Anesthesia resident appreciated the insight and examples given that could not be found in a textbook. “The best part has been the practical knowledge shared.”

Dr. Tom Coonan, Dalhousie University Department of Anesthesia, heads the Anesthesia in Challenging Environments Global Outreach Course. His efforts and those of the course organizing committee, the Department of Anesthesia’s Office of Education and the Global Health Office of Anesthesia, resulted in a course that some presenters and repeat participants described as “the best so far.”

International Students Join the Graduation Class of 2011

June 3, 2011 jf255033 Leave a Comment

Ahmad Fadly Md Yassin receives his Medical Degree

Ahmad Fadly Md Yassin arrived in Halifax in 2009 from Malaysia with expectations of winter cold and hard work as he started clerkship. Two years later, he expressed gratitude to Dalhousie, the Faculty of Medicine and the Global Health Office for their support to ensuring his success. This year, three students from Malaysia and two International Medical Graduates were part of the 2011 graduating class in Medicine.

“I’ve learned an awful lot here. People are very helpful. The faculty is very helpful. The students are awesome and very supportive,” says Fadly. “I learned a lot from Dr. Cathy Cervin such as the culture here and what the faculty expects us to do.”

The IMU program stems from a partnership established in 1992 between Dalhousie University and the International Medical University in Malaysia. Students complete 2.5 years of training before coming to Dalhousie for two years of clerkship and graduate with a Medical Degree from Dalhousie University.

In 2008, another unique partnership between the Faculty of Medicine and the Province of Nova Scotia was started to keep valuable immigrant physicians in Nova Scotia. The program allows two International Medical Graduates (IMGs) to study in Med III and IV. Upon graduation, they complete a residency program and will work in Nova Scotia. Amna Kremed is one of these students who graduated in May 2011.

“I consider myself lucky that I got accepted into the program,” says Amna. “The chances for IMGs are very limited and restricted, and it is not easy to get licensed as they had different background training. The IMG program has overcome these differences.”

Following graduation, Amna will complete a Family Medicine residency in Edmonton and Fadly will return to Malaysia for his residency.

Researcher of the Month – Dr. Robert Anderson

May 20, 2011 jf255033 Leave a Comment

The purpose of this feature is to showcase Dalhousie faculty whose health research is making an impact on a global scale. Each month we will write about someone who has done significant global health work in collaboration with the Global Health Office. The work these men and women do is invaluable and inspiring. These researchers deserve to be highlighted and with this feature we are trying to do just that.

Dr. Robert Anderson

Dr. Robert Anderson has made a significant impact on global health research working in collaboration with the Global Health Office and various partnerships overseas. He is a Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie University and he is a member of the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology. Dr. Anderson is passionate about global health issues, building research capacity, engaging with students and establishing international partnerships.

Some of Dr. Anderson’s specific interests involve researching to fight infectious diseases and developing better vaccine strategies. He is known for his studies on the Dengue virus and on respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). He has done extensive work to develop a vaccine for RSV, a virus that is responsible for infections such as bronchiolitis and the common cold. Through his research and collaborations, he has helped build a global health community at Dalhousie and in South East Asia. This work has developed a network between three universities: Dalhousie, Thammasat University in Thailand and Kaohsiung Medical University in Taiwan.

“Collaboration, working together, cooperation on global health research can only have the benefit of helping us all,” said Dr. Anderson in an interview with GHO last year. “If we’re going to be able to be masters of infectious disease control, we’re going to have to do that on a global basis.”

Dr. Anderson is also committed to nourishing the experiences of Dalhousie and international students. He has hosted a number of Thai students for research training in his laboratory in Halifax, and this has given the students invaluable experience and research tools. Dr. Anderson has also worked with the Global Health Office to develop a summer program in Thailand for Dalhousie students. The program is hosted by the Faculty of Medicine at Khon Kaen University in Thailand and is provided in both clinical and non-clinical departments.

“Certainly educating our future generation of doctors and scientists in the global aspects of disease, and of course in other aspects of medicine and health care, is going to be key to being successful,” said Dr. Anderson.

In 2010, Dr. Anderson received the Dr. John Savage Memorial Award for Faculty Excellence in Global Health. This award recognizes an outstanding humanitarian contribution to international health by a Dalhousie Medical School faculty member. Along with the aforementioned global health work and various other achievements, this award is representative of Dr. Anderson’s passion and considerable impact on global health research.

2011 Global Health Research Forum

May 16, 2011 jf255033 Leave a Comment

"Stengthening Mentorship with Faculty and Students"

Doctors, faculty, students and staff from Dalhousie University and around Atlantic Canada gathered on Tuesday, May 3 to take part in the fifth annual Global Health Research Forum, a symposium that addresses issues and progress in local, global and international health.

The event consisted of speeches and workshops that dealt with topics ranging from global health mentorship to building research capacity within health systems. The Forum was organized by Dalhousie’s Global Health Office, with collaboration from the Canadian Society for International Health, the Canadian Coalition for Global Health Research, the University of Prince Edward Island, Memorial University and Dalhousie University.

Shawna O’Hearn, Director of the Global Health Office, believes the event was a huge success. She says the Forum is a venue where researchers and others interested in global health can meet and converse with each other.

“One goal is for people to get to know each other. A lot of times when we are in the midst of our research and our work we tend to not know the other players. We thought: ‘let’s bring everyone together to hear what’s happening in global health research,’” says O’Hearn. “Another goal is to support new researchers in global health. This is an opportunity for people to think about how they can tag their research into the global health arena.”

The day was bookended by two special guest speakers. First Dr. Peter A. Singer, CEO of Grand Challenges Canada, talked about his organization’s steps towards improving health and well-being in developing countries by integrating scientific, technological, business and social innovation. Dr. David Wilkinson, Dean of Medicine and Head of School at the University of Queensland School of Medicine, spoke during the closing ceremonies about the advancements his university is making in the realm of global health.

Dr. Wilkinson stressed the importance of global health research and the commitment needed to become a global health organization.

“I think it’s fair to say that if you’re going to be a global school, you’re going to need a global faculty, you need an international faculty, and you certainly need a curriculum that teaches global health,” says Dr. Wilkinson. “I would argue that you need a diverse student body and a lot of student exchange. I think some key international partnerships are really important, and, indeed, an international presence.”

"Strengthening Mentorship with Faculty and Students"

Aside from the speeches and workshops, participants were able to peruse the Graduate Student Research Day poster and platform presentations, which are a collection of students’ research displayed in the halls of Tupper Link on Dalhousie’s campus.

The event was capped off with the 2011 Global Health Awards ceremony. Alyson Holland, a Med IV student who has led many global health activities, received the Dr. Ronald Stewart Award for Student Leadership in Global Health. Dr. Sabina Nagpal, a resident in psychiatry who focuses on mental health capacity in Guyana, received the Dr. TJ Jock Murray Resident Award. Dr. Stan Kutcher, a Dalhousie professor of psychiatry and a leader in numerous organizations and global health initiatives, received the Dr. John Savage Memorial Award for Faculty Excellence.

Not only was the Forum a productive event for faculty and researchers, it was also a valuable learning experience for students. Margaret Schwartz, a health promotions student, says she learned a lot from the experience.

“I would definitely recommend others to attend the Forum,” says Schwartz. “It was a fantastic eye-opener and it really enhanced my knowledge of global health and what is being done to improve it.”

So what should we expect for next year? O’Hearn says she’d like the Forum to be even more inclusive.

“It would be nice to have some of our international partners involved in the Forum. Because it shouldn’t just be about the capacity in the Atlantic region, it should also be about what’s happening with our partners around the world,” says O’Hearn. “I really like having everyone come together.”

The Workshops

"Local Global Health Education: Evidence and Practice Together"

Morning:

“Interprofessional Education, Mentorship and Research with Partners in Guyana”

In this workshop, participants discussed the student rehabilitation program, the post-RN psychiatric mental health nursing program and Guyana’s family, surgical and mental health systems.

“Strengthening Mentorship with Faculty and Students”

In this workshop, participants discussed key concepts of mentorship, Dalhousie’s experience with global health research mentorship and CCGHR’s role in collaboration.

“Local Global Health Education: Evidence and Practice Together”

In this workshop, participants discussed a student-led course that addressed the health of socially marginalized communities in Halifax, the services available to address the needs of these communities and how to integrate principles of health equity and social accountability into students’ careers.

Afternoon:

“Establishing a Global Health Program”

In this workshop, participants discussed the opportunities and best practices within the Canadian university environment specific to global health, the tools and resources required to sustain a global health program and the collaborative partnerships within Canadian universities that stimulate and nurture global health.

“Building Research Capacity within Health Systems (Using Examples from Brazil, Jamaica and Zambia)”

In this workshop, participants discussed current health worker retention and recruitment strategies in two districts in Zambia, as well as the alignment of existing health worker competencies with the health needs of the people in these districts.

“Hidden Elements with Global Health Research”

This workshop consisted of four presentations of ‘hidden elements’ in global health research:

Dr. Ellen Hickey – “Why should we care about speech-language pathology services in developing countries?”

Emily Zinck – “Keeping peace abound: How do we tell these children that there is another path of Kenya?”

Vanessa Donnelly – “Diabetes: The new health crisis in Tanzania?”

Reddi Sekhara – “Mid-term evaluation of NRHM policy in tribal community in India: Cultural sensitivity in health services”

The Speeches

Opening Speaker: Dr. Peter A. Singer

Dr. Singer is, among other things, the Chief Executive Officer of Grand Challenges Canada. He spoke about his organization’s steps towards improving health and well-being in developing countries by integrating scientific, technological, business and social innovation.

Dr. Peter A. Singer

Closing Speaker: Dr. David Wilkinson

Dr. Wilkinson is the Dean of Medicine and Head of School at the University of Queensland School Of Medicine in Brisbane, Australia. He spoke about the advancements his university is making in the realm of global health.

Dr. David Wilkinson

The Awards

The Global Health Awards were also handed out at this year’s Global Health Research Forum. The recipients are:

Alyson Holland – The Dr. Ronald Stewart Award for Student Leadership in Global Health

Dr. Sabina Nagpal – The Dr. TJ Jock Murray Resident Award

Dr. Stan Kutcher – The Dr. John Savage Memorial Award for Faculty

Thanks to all our partners, presenters, speakers, facilitators, volunteers, staff and participants. See you next year!

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