Medicine is a global profession framed by forces going beyond
national boundaries, such as food insecurity, human migration, climate change
and conflict. It follows that medical education needs to keep pace with these
changes and to ensure the next generation of doctors are aware of global
issues, regardless of whether they choose to work in the UK or overseas. This
awareness improves their critical thinking, enables them to empathise more with
patients from diverse backgrounds, and strengthens their ability to understand
the challenges faced by different types of health systems – and not just the
NHS. Global health covers issues of health and healthcare across the world, and
not just in developing countries.
This module on Global
Health and Humanities (GHH) represents the first of several
initiatives planned at University of Aberdeen to enable medical students to
graduate with this awareness. Global health involves diverse disciplines
including humanities, social sciences and the arts. Beginning the integration
of global health into the curriculum through the Medical Humanities block is
thus entirely appropriate. The module will use the humanities as a lens or
perspective to examine different aspects of global health and is intended for
those who have no prior exposure to these topics as well as those who have some
experiences.
Course Coordinators: Dr Aravinda Guntupalli, aravinda.guntupalli@abdn.ac.uk
and Dr Helen Vosper, helen.vosper@abdn.ac.uk
This course is capped at 30 students
Global Health video outline