The Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), led by Dr. K. Srinath Reddy, has made great progress in establishing a school of public health in India. Currently, plans are underway for PHFI to launch the first three Indian Institutes of Public Health (IIPH) in late 2008. These schools will be located in Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh), Gandhinagar (Gujarat) and Delhi. As the infrastructure of the IIPHs are evolving and being further developed, immediate plans are also underway to begin delivering diploma programs in each of these locations across India. In addition, five additional institutes are planned for the future as well as the development of Centers of Excellence in specific areas of the public health sciences.

In order to train a new cadre of public health faculty to meet the public health challenges of India, PHFI has worked closely with renown institutions in a number of counties including; the United Kingdom (The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University College London, Edinburgh and Imperial University), Australia (University of Melbourne and University of Sydney) and in Europe (The Institute of Tropical Medicine in Belgium and Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands). PHFI partnerships have also been extended to schools in Canada and other locations throughout Europe .

The US also serves as a premier destination of choice. A number of India 's finest scholars have opted to enroll in eleven ASPH member schools across the US . Currently, there are 23 men and women studying in the US through the PHFI Faculty Fellows Program. These dynamic young professionals are dispersed at ASPH member schools across the US including; Boston University, Emory, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Tulane, UCLA, the University of Albany, the University of Minnesota, the University of Michigan, the University of North Carolina, the University of Pittsburg and the University of South Florida.

A Sampling of India's Public Health Faculty Fellows Share Their Stories of Graduate Study in the US

Raghupathy Anchala who is enrolled at the Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburg , noted that his most rewarding academic experience in the US thus far has been, “the culmination of class based teaching into community based activities.” On a similar vein, Archna Singh , a student studying environmental health sciences and human nutrition at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor , shared, “ I also appreciate the priority given to developing an analytical, critical and application based approach to problems and real life situations in most of the courses.”

Veena Murlidhar , a student in global health and infectious disease from Navi Mumbai, is enrolled at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University . In Mumbai, Veena implemented national health programs and led mass campaigns for maternal and child health, tuberculosis and malaria. In regards to balancing academic and family life, Veena commented, “ Juggling my assignments, homework, learning Biostats, my five-year old son's school, and cooking” are proving to be tough challenges.

In respect to public health service, it's noteworthy that a number of PHFI Fellows are making a difference in the US through volunteerism and research. Seema Murthy , an epidemiology student from Bangalore , enrolled at the University of Michigan , is currently working as a clinical coordinator for a CDC sponsored study titled; MFLU. This research study explores the non pharmaceutical interventions for preventing influenza transmission. The residence halls of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor serve as a learning laboratory for this campus-based study.

Giridhara Babu from Bangalore , Karnataka is enrolled at UCLA studying epidemiology. Giridhara commented, “ US faculty care deeply about students and inspire us to be creative, energetic and to be original in the understanding of the discipline.” Upon returning to India, Giridhara shared that he “plans to concentrate on policies and programs with a primary focus on the major public health sources affecting vulnerable populations, especially in the areas of maternal and child health.”

Anitha Thippaiah , a physician from Bangalore studying maternal and child health at the University of South Florida , has participated in the Global Health Conference and the American Public Health Association Conference. She has also interned at the Pan American Health Organization. Anita shared that she “hopes to continue her association with USF and bring the approaches and lessons learned from courses such as social marketing, to the new Indian Institute of Public Health.” Anitha also recounted that “learning how to analyze health issues, advocate for policies impacting health and develop skills to teach about public health issues has provided her a wider perspective” and helped her to “develop critical thinking to public health issues in India .” Anitha continued by adding, “I particularly like the advancements in health informatics in the US and the importance given to public health research. I have lots to take back not only from the faculty members but also from the diverse fellow students who have come from different countries.”

Srikrishna Ramachandra , from Sagar taluk in the Shimoga district of Karnataka, plans to graduate in May 2008 with a master of public health in international health and development from the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. In regards to his US public health curriculum, Srikrisha recounted, “I was pleased to be able to select a combination of courses (apart from core courses) and design my own course curriculum.” Srikrishna has also been active outside of the classroom. He recently participated in the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU) and is looking forward to volunteering for the Annual Conference of the Population Association of America, to be held in New Orleans in April 2008. In addition, Srikrisha is completing an internship on emergency preparedness and response at the Louisiana Office of Public Health where he is researching mass immunization preparedness in an outbreak situation, and also, pandemic flu outbreak preparedness.

Anjali Borhade of Nasik , Maharashtra , is also studying at Tulane. In regards to her academic experience, Anjali shared, “The most rewarding experience for me has been the opportunity to develop skills to collaborate field  level experience with public health research and academics.”  For the past eleven years, Anjali has been involved with design and implementation of interventions and advocacy work in the area of poverty, working specifically with the sexual and reproductive health of vulnerable populations. Anjali recounted that it was “difficult leaving her NGO work in India ” but that she is “very pleased with her choice to complement her master of social work with a master of public health degree. “

Somen Saha of Tripura is currently studying health systems management and health economics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . Of his experience at Chapel Hill , Somen was pleased with the school's c onnection to a wide variety of agencies worldwide, especially for pursuing internship opportunities. He noted that his US educational experience “provided a stimulating study and work environment with perspectives of multiple stakeholders and not solely from theoretical and academic perspectives.” Saha went on to add that, “Interacting with students from different countries provided an intriguing environment to learn from each others perspective and views…and informal discussions like  The Global Health Dinner Discussion Series , and The Dean's Lecture Series were really rewarding in terms of value addition and experience sharing.” In speaking to new projects and initiatives in which he is involved, Somen shared that he was currently assisting the Chapel Hill public health faculty in developing an executive certificate global health program which would bring in innovative learning techniques for distance education.


Closing Comments from PHFI's Visionary Leader, Dr. K. Srinath Reddy

As PHFI looks to the future, Dr. K. Srinath Reddy shared, “PHFI is expanding the Faculty Fellows Program from master's to PhD, Post-doc and DrPH level courses. Initiatives to strengthen ties through collaborative research programs, especially involving our fellows in respective schools, are also being planned.” And finally, in regards to the collaboration of ASPH member schools with PHFI, Dr. Reddy noted, “We would sincerely like to thank the schools and their leadership for stepping forward to partner with us, investing their time, effort and money. We are confident that these partnerships will help build long lasting relationships between individuals as well as institutions, furthering public health in India and across the globe.”

Jeffery T. Johnson
Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine