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Welcome message
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Welcome to the latest instalment of the Alma Mata newsletter outlining the latest global health news, events, educational links and opportunities.
This month, Typhoon Haiyan has wreaked catastrophic damage in the Philippines, with an official death toll of over 5,000 and the displacement of over 4.4 million people. Strong responses from the United Nations relief agency, governments and organisations, and the global general public mean that a significant relief effort is currently underway. The Central African Republic, meanwhile, is experiencing tragedy of a different nature, with internal conflict and horrific violence on such a scale that the country is said to be standing "on the verge of genocide". UNICEF and other organisations have spoken out to draw attention to this "forgotten crisis" and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has expressed his increasing concerns, calling for urgent intervention.
In other news, the Lancet speaks out about the UK Government's proposals with respect to health and immigration; polio - the grey cloud over the Middle East - makes a comeback; the Minister for the Environment is outwitted by a badger; and last, but never least, helminths portrayed in technicolour dream map.
This month has also seen the re-launch of one of our collaborating organisations Medact, who marked the occasion with a one-day conference on November 9th featuring a fantastic line-up of speakers. Slides, audio, and video footage from the day can be found on their website. "Travellers and other minority communities - managing health without the NHS", the last in our Global Health Advocacy seminar series held in conjunction with the Royal College of Physicians takes place this Thursday 28th November. We are currently in the process of finalising topics for next year's seminars - please do let us know if you have any suggestions or topics that you would like us to include. Alma Mata continues to grow as an organisation, with a number of forthcoming events taking place in Liverpool - see below for details.
For details of Global Health related events and activities, see below or visit the events page on our website. Please get in touch if you have any events / news stories that you would like to be included in next month's newsletter.
Read, enjoy and tweet and Facebook away...
Photo credit: Torben Bruhn, Estancia town, Panay, EU/ECHO 14 November 2013
Free seminars to develop global health advocates
RCP/Alma Mata Seminar : 'Travellers and other minority communities - managing health without the NHS'
Date: Thursday 28th November 2013
Time: 18:30 - 20:00
Location: Royal College of Physicians | Regents Park | London | NW1 4LE
Further details will be posted soon, see our website
Any queries please contact us
To reserve your place please email: international@rcplondon.ac.uk
Upcoming events
Education, Volunteering and Careers
Global Health News
Upcoming events
Turning The World Upside Down Mental Health Award
Date: 27th November
Location: London
Turning the World Upside Down (TTWUD.org) is an online platform to showcase healthcare projects, practices and ideas from low and middle income countries, that could be learned from in high income countries. They have just launched a Mental Health Challenge, to focus their beam on one of the biggest emerging global health problems. At the event, a Dragons’ Den style panel of experts will hear the best ideas submitted to the challenge. Each presenter will have 5 minutes to share their idea, followed by feedback and questions from the panel, audience and viewers of the live video stream. With opening remarks by Lord Nigel Crisp and a world class panel including Philip Campbell, Editor-in-Chief of Nature, and Paul Farmer, CEO of mental health charity Mind. For more information see here.
Charities and NGOs Careers Fair, LSHTM
Date: 27 November 2013 11:00 am
Location: LSHTM, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT
Autumn Fair
See the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s 2013 Fair Guide on the LSTMH website for further details.
MSF Health in Humanitarian Settings Conference
Date: Thursday 28 November 2013
Location: Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, Merseyside L3 5QA
This interdisciplinary one day event aims to take a holistic view of current research in the field of humanitarianism, acting as a forum to share and discuss new research, highlight key areas for future study and facilitate networking and future collaboration between researchers from different institutions and disciplines. Abstracts of original research are welcome for either oral or poster presentation at the conference. To find out more, click here.
RCP/Alma Mata Developing Leaders Seminar series: ‘Travellers and other minority communities - managing health without the NHS’
Date: Thursday 28th November 2013, 18:30 - 20:00
Location: Royal College of Physicians | Regents Park | London | NW1 4LE
Further details will be posted soon, see our website
Any queries please contact us
To reserve your place please email: international@rcplondon.ac.uk
Public Health Science: A National Conference dedicated to New Research in UK Public Health
Conference Date: 29th November 2013
Location: UCL Institute of Child Health, 30 Guildford Street, London WC1N 1EH
The core of the event will consist of oral and poster presentations of selected research. Peer-reviewed abstracts of shortlisted papers will be published by The Lancet, online and in print. The conference will present work spanning all aspects of public health and using a full range of methodological approaches. Further details can be found online on the conference website. Contact: info@ichevents.com or 02079052675/2699
A Vision for Child Health - Learning from the Global Perspective
Date: Monday 2nd December
Location: The Cumberland Hotel, Great Cumberland Place, London W1C 1LZ
Speakers will include: Lord Nigel Crisp, Independent Crossbench Member of the House of Lords, ex-Chief Executive of the NHS and ex-Parliamentary Secretary of the UK Department of Health; Professor Wendy Reid, Medical Director of HEE; Dr Hilary Cass, President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health; Professor Anthony Costello, Professor of International Child Health and Director of the UCL Institute for Global Health; Professor Chris O'Callaghan, Professor of Respiratory & Paediatric Medicine, UCL Institute of Child Health; Dr Ingrid Wolfe, Child Public Health Research Fellow, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; and Professor Stephen Allen, Paediatrics and International Health / Honorary Consultant Paediatrician/ RCPCH International Officer / David Baum Fellow
The conference is free but there are limited places available. To see the programme and to register please see here.
Rony Brauman: "The Humanitarian Space: current challenges and conflicts"
Date: Wednesday 4th December, 6:30p.m.
Venue: Liverpool Medical Institute: Lecture Theatre, 114 Mt Pleasant, Liverpool, Merseyside L3 5SR
Rony Braumann was one of the earliest members of Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders), and was its president from 1982 to 1994. He was a professor at the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris from 1994 to 1997 and is now scientific advisor in the school of international affairs of Sciences Po. Brauman is also Executive Director of the Humanitarian and Conflict Response (HCRI) Institute at the University of Manchester. To be involved in all the Global Health Related events in and around Liverpool, please contact Alma Mata Liverpool.
Health Care in Danger: Tackling violence again healthcare in war and emergency
Date: Wednesday 4th December, 17:30 - 19:15
Location: RSM, London
Catastrophes & Conflict Forum
in association with the National Committee of the Red Cross and the British Red Cross. Looks at the complexity of health care and needs in other countries, the ethical and legal concerns related to healthcare in conflicts and catastrophes and you can find out more about the Conflict and Catastrophes forum. For more details see here.
The health of Palestinians inside and outside the occupied Palestinian territory
Date: 5 December 2013 6:30-8.30pm, followed by drinks reception until 9.30pm
Venue: Council Chamber, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), 5-11 Theobalds Road, London, WC1X 8SH
Medical Aid for Palestinians, in association with The Lancet, are hosting the London launch of new research brought to light by the Lancet-Palestinian Health Alliance (LPHA).
The LPHA is a network of Palestinian and international researchers committed to using the highest scientific standards to describe, analyse and evaluate the health and healthcare of Palestinians. Established in 2009, its key aims are to build capacity for research; to develop scientific methods that are culture-specific; to increase academic collaboration – within occupied Palestine, Lebanon and across the region – and to engage in advocacy based on science.
Speakers include: Sir Iain Chalmers, one of the founders of the Cochrane Collaboration and coordinator of the James Lind Initiative; Dr Richard Horton, Editor of the Lancet; Professor Rita Giacaman, Institute of Community and Public Health, Birzeit University; Aimee Shalan, MAP’s Director of Advocacy and Communications; Professor Graham Watt, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, and MAP Trustee
Spaces are limited, to reserve a place please email william.parry@map-uk.org by 27 November 2013. For more information, please see website.
Screening: Pushing the Elephant
Date: 9th December 2013, 7pm
Venue: SOAS, Russell Square: College Buildings , room KLT
Pushing the Elephant tells the extraordinary story of a mother and daughter reunited after a decade separated by civil war. In the late 1990s, Rose Mapendo lost everything to the violence that engulfed the Democratic Republic of Congo. She emerged from the suffering advocating peace and reconciliation. But after helping numerous victims to rebuild their lives, there is one person Rose must still teach to forgive - her daughter Nangabire. For more details, please see website.
Grand Challenge of Global Health Symposium:The End of Poverty
Date: 11th December 2013, 5pm - 6.30pm with a drinks reception to follow
Venue: UCL Institute of Global Health
Could the Post-2015 Development Agenda Promote Poverty Eradication and Global Health as International Social Norms?
Speakers: Professor David Hulme, Professor of Development Studies, University of Manchester; Executive Director Brooks World Poverty Institute
Followed by a panel and audience discussion. For more details see here.
International Organisations Careers Fair
Date: 14th December 2013, 10am - 4pm
Venue: Methodist Central Hall Storey's Gate, Westminster, London SW1H 9NH
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is holding this Careers Fair which will provide an opportunity to gain information first-hand on working for an international organisation,a nd using your skills and experience to tackle the most important global issues. The Fair will host around 50 exhibition stands from a range of international bodies, including UN organisations, International Financial Institutions, and European Institutions. There will be focus/panel sessions throughout the day which will give further insight to their work as well as the application process.
The Fair is targeted at mid to senior-level career professionals; however, there will also be stands and events of interest to post- and recent graduates.
Please email careersfair@imo.org to confirm your attendance by Wednesday 27th November. For more details, see here.
Research in Progress
Date: 11th December 2013
Venue: The Institute of Education, 20 Bedford Way, WC1H 0AL; site map and directions here.
Held by the Royal Society for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, this is a one-day meeting for young researchers and students to present unpublished 'research in progress' through short oral and poster presentations. The Manson Christmas Lecture will be the opening plenary of the meeting; this year's lecture will be delivered by Professor David Molyneux and will be titled: "Neglected Tropical Diseases: now more than just the 'other diseases': the post-2015 agenda". More information and a scientific programme are available.
Register via the RSTMH website: tickets are £20 with discounted rates of £10 for RSTMH Fellows. It is also possible to register for the Manson Christmas Lecture as a stand-alone event if you do not wish to register for the full meeting.
Writing Global Health
Date: 16th January 2014, 10am - 4pm
Location: London
Organised by the British International Studies Association (BISA), the aim of this workshop is to provide guidance to postgraduate students working in global health and international politics on how to get published. As a multi-disciplinary field, it is important to know the process of publication for both social science and medical/scientific journals, so as to be able to disseminate research accordingly. This workshop will not only run students through the process of writing and submitting an article, but also will offer an opportunity for selected students to discuss their papers and seek solutions to improve their work to make it more suited to academic publishing.
Attendance is free; you can register via Eventbrite.
Topics in Infection 2014
Date: 24th January 2014
Venue: Brunei Gallery, SOAS, London
A one-day meeting on 'hot topics in infection' for microbiologists, consultants in infectious disease, general physicians, infection control nurses and biomedical and clinical scientists. Organised by RSTMH in association with Public Health England and Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Confirmed sessions include:
- 'Infections in the bush', Dr Matthew Dryden, Royal Hampshire County Hospital
- 'Schistosomiasis: three decades of developing diagnostic tests', Professor Mike Doenhoff, University of Nottingham
- 'Infections in the backstreet', Dr Nick Gent, Public Health England
- 'Typhoid in the 21st century' Dr Jayshree Dave, Public Health England
Tickets are priced at £50 for RSTMH Fellows and £60 for non-Fellows. For more information, please see RSTMH website.
Global Health Alert: Child Labour
Date: Tuesday 4th February 2014, 6:30p.m.
Venue: Royal Society of Medicine, 1 Wimpole Street, London W1G 0AE
Speaker Kailash Satyarthi is a leading human rights activist from India who has been at the forefront of the global movement to end child slavery and exploitative child labour since 1980. He is founding member and chairperson of Global March Against Child Labour a worldwide network of trade unions, teachers' and civil society organisations that work together towards the shared development goals of ending child labour and ensuring access to quality public education. For more information, please see website.
Research Assistant at the Institute of Global Health (UCL)
Part-time position to work as part of a cross disciplinary team at IGH and colleagues at member institutions of the London International Development Centre, working on a multi-disciplinary research project to look at complex interactions between development targets as part of a joint academic response to the UN’s on-going process to develop an agenda for post-2015 international development goals.
Closing date: 4th December 2013.
Research Fellow - Wellcome Trust/Brighton and Sussex Centre for Global Health
This new post has been created as a result of a Wellcome Trust strategic award to Brighton and Sussex Medical School to create a Centre for Global Health Research. The Centre, a partnership with academic institutions in Cameroon, Ethiopia, and Sudan, will take a multidisciplinary approach to advance Global Health research with a main, but not necessarily exclusive, focus on genetics and genomics in the broadest sense. Looking for PhD and post-doctoral research experience (or equivalent) in any relevant discipline and be committed to supporting the career development of scientists at partner institutions, alongside your own. Experience of undertaking research in low-income settings would be desirable. Interested candidates are encouraged to discuss the position informally with: Centre Director Professor Melanie Newport, Chair in Infectious Diseases and Global Health: m.j.newport@bsms.ac.uk; Professor Gail Davery, Chair of Global Health Epidemiology: g.davey@bsms.ac.uk; Professor Bobbie Farsides, Chair of Clinical and Biomedical Ethics b.farsides@bsms.ac.uk.
Closing date: Friday 13th December 2013
ICROSS Internship Programme 2014
ICROSS Kenya’s 2014/15 internships and volunteer program are now open for application. The program will focus on: Public health; Health services; Human rights; Cultural anthropology; Geography; and International Affairs.
The program takes 40 interns each year, who can be gap year students, elective and post graduate students, or professionals on sabbatical.
All those wishing to apply please contact Danny Ngwiri at director@icrossinternational.org
Internship at the Welbodi Partnership
The Welbodi Partnership is a UK registered charity that has worked since 2008 to save the lives of children and mothers in Sierra Leone, which has some of the worst child and maternal health statistics in the world. The Welbodi Partnership promotes locally led and managed solutions that bring us closer to a future where quality paediatric and maternal healthcare are available to all. The Welbodi Partnership is at an exciting juncture in our work, with plans to expand into new healthcare facilities next year while continuing to develop successful current projects. The Welbodi partnership are currently looking for a Project Design and Grant Writing Intern. This is an unpaid post, but travel expenses will be reimbursed, and there is a possibility of employment at the end of the 4-5 month internship.
Start date: January 2014
Place of work: Combination of home based and office based (Central London) Work hours: Full time equivalent, flexible hours.
Volunteer at the Institute for Rural Health Studies in India
The Institute for Rural Health Studies are looking for volunteers to help support their work which provides quality healthcare to some of the poorest rural communities in Andhra Pradesh, South India. In India there is a chronic shortage of doctors in rural areas, however through the dedication of foreign volunteer doctors, the IRHS has trained local paramedics and health workers so that they can manage most of the patients who come to the clinics. If you would like to find out more about the organisation and volunteer email pdb7@cam.ac.uk
Volunteering Opportunity for GPs with RCGP and VSO
The RCGP in partnership with the VSO has developed 12 month primary care placements for GPs in Makeni, Sierra Leone. They are currently seeking volunteers who may be able to start between September 2013 and January 2014, if you or anyone you know think you might be interested please visits the dedicated website or email international@rcgp.org.uk.
Aksum-Barts Partnership Advert
The Aksum-Barts Partnership is a new link that has been established between Aksum University Medical School, Ethiopia and Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, UK. The partnership was initiated by staff at Barts in late-2012 with support from a THET start-up grant. To date, there has been one staff scoping visit and one staff educational visit and a recent student visit to determine the hopes and expectations of Aksum students for the partnership. Based on the expectations of Aksum and Barts students and staff they have developed four main projects: Education, Empowerment, Electives and Research. This predominantly student-led project is currently looking for expert input and guidance from experienced clinicians and academics to help the student group make informed and ethically-sound decisions about how to develop the partnership. If you are interested or would like to find out more, please contact us at aksumbartspartnership@gmail.com. or contact the lead student coordinators directly (Esther Tillson, ha09029@qmul.ac.uk or Samson Williams, s.a.williams@smd11.qmul.ac.uk)
RSTMH Grants 2014
RSTMH is in the second stage of a two-year programme of travel and training scholarships (£1,000 maximum) and small grants (£5,000 maximum) for research and fieldwork. Regulations and applications forms can be downloaded from the RSTMH website. The deadline for submitting applications is Friday 10th January 2014.
News from around the world...
Time for a quick look at Global health News stories since October 2013:
Middle Eastern countries scramble to stop spread of polio
The Lancet on Immigration and Health states: "The UK Government's plans are not only ethically, economically, and politically unsound, but downright unhealthy."
The Shape of Training Review calls for more flexibility in training and shift from specialist to generalist among other things
The launch of Open Access Button - mapping the global effects of research paywalls
Bovine TB - Badgers accused by the Minister for the Environment of "moving the goal posts" - this story in game form
Tuberculosis: a war that must be won on the ground and in the field
Health inequalities are worsening across Europe, says WHO
WHO publishes the first comprehensive update to the 2006 Malaria Vaccine Technology roadmap
Global Atlas of Helminth Infections: An open-access information resource on the distribution of soil-transmitted helminths, schistosomiasis and lymphatic filariasis
Take Action!
Disasters Emergencies Committee: Philippines Typhoon Appeal
Join the UK International Emergency Trauma Database
Finally
Make sure you e-mail us at info@almamata.org.uk with all your news stories, events and updates for the Alma Mata network!
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