Global Health

Since I am now officially a third year medical student in the UK, I have the opportunity to decide if next year I want to interrupt my studies and take either a BSc (Bachelor’s in Science) or an MSc (Masters). Over the summer I have been frantically looking at various courses offered by different universities, in particular Masters courses, as I would rather work hard for a Masters than a BSc, both of which would take roughly the same time to complete.

Ofcourse there are hundreds of different courses with all universities providing a twist to each course as a way of enticing students to apply there. But one course that I have found myself attracted towards is Global Health. I was lucky enough to attend a conference last year with regards to Global Health and was quite taken aback by this field so I thought I would use this article to sum up what Global Health is all about and what future job prospects look like.

So what is Global Health?

Global Health is the health of populations in a global context, often being defined as an area of study, research and practice which places priority on improving healthcare for people around the world. Problems that have global political or economic impact are often emphasized, along with problems that transcend national borders. It is also a field which deals with reducing disparities in health care and protecting against global threats that disregard national borders, such as health issues related to climate change, economic crisis or poor governance.

It is predominantly associated with the World Health Organisation (WHO), along with UNICEF, World Food Programme and the World Bank

 

What future prospects arise from studying Global Health?

The Masters programs equip students with knowledge and transferable skills for future careers in research, programme management, policy advice and advocacy (both at a national and international level), along with work in public, private and not-for-profit sections. However, one important factor to consider is that one needs a good understanding of developing countries and experience in those countries both short term and long term. As global health is about health improvement a lot of that will be in developing or under developed countries. Thus most often jobs are with Oxfam, MSF or the WHO.

Another opportunity for global health professionals is to study diseases having a big impact on the world including HIV, malaria, cholera and other large scale epidemics. There is also a demand for qualified individuals in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.