Global Health Focus Provides Exciting Research Opportunities Abroad For StudentsGraduate students at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health are transcending national borders, learning just as much outside the classroom as they do inside it.
As part of their graduate research, Ted Hufstader and Albert Plenty have the opportunity to travel to South America and Africa to broaden their educations and to undertake vital research projects that will help the health care community gain a better understanding of HIV/AIDS.
Hufstader is pursuing a joint master’s degree in public health and anthropology with a concentration in global health, while Plenty is completing his master’s in public health in the division of epidemiology.
Hufstader is spending this summer in Santiago, Chile working as a research assistant at La Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile in the School of Nursing.
Together with Lilian Furner, UIC SPH alumna and principal investigator on a project called Mano a Mano (Hand in Hand), they explore “how ideas of masculinity are formed; how they are produced and acted upon; and how they affect the sexual behaviors of men and their perceptions of HIV/AIDS,” Hufstader said. “It is a multi-faceted project with a diverse population sample (men, women and health workers). I am working on the research that focuses on an intervention tailored to Chilean men.”
In an excerpt from the blog Hufstader is keeping while studying there, he wrote, “Santiago, because of its distance from the sea and its proximity to the Andes Mountains, has very poor air quality and lots of particulate contamination—smog. An equivalent in the U.S. would be Los Angeles. I have noticed a difference in my respiratory health as I find myself winded and/or coughing when I go running.”
“Air quality is actually a very big public health issue for the Santiago metropolitan area. Poor air quality, coupled with seasonal influenza, makes for busy consultorios (primary health clinics) …. Heart and other chronic diseases and respiratory diseases rank high among the leading causes of death in Chile,” he added.
In his blog, Hufstader admits he is learning numerous lessons in public health practice, apart from his research focus, particularly because when he arrived in Chile, there was an outbreak of flu porcino, or pig flu.
“Actually, with such high numbers of people reporting to medical centers, the Ministry of Health made an announcement a couple of nights ago on the evening news asking for any health personnel who were currently not working to come in and help relieve the ever-growing burden of patients,” he wrote. “Here in the office, my co-workers are saying that it is a truly historic time to be in Chile and working in health, because the health system has never experienced something of this magnitude.”
Educating Kenyans About Homosexuality And HIV/AIDS
While Hufstader returns from his research experience this semester, Plenty is headed for Kisumu, Kenya for the fall 2009 semester, where he’ll investigate cases of HIV and the risk behaviors of men who have sexual contact with other men, an act that is considered illegal there.
In both the South American and African communities, stereotypes about male behaviors are deeply ingrained. Plenty admits those labels increase the difficulty with research projects such as his.
“Due to the stigma and criminalization of men having sex with men, or MSM, in Kenya,” identifying participants was a special challenge, Plenty said. Nevertheless, the importance of the research is obvious with recent evidence demonstrating that in many middle- and low-income countries, men having sex with men are at a greater risk of HIV infection than the general population, Plenty added.
For his work, Plenty is especially interested in the ages of the men he studies, their socio-economic status, as well as their preconceived ideas about HIV and AIDS.
“Because of low employment and high stigma, MSM may be particularly vulnerable to larger societal, cultural and economic forces that make them more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors,” he said. “It is very important to accurately characterize the risk of this population and to identify what is needed to help reduce their risk.”
Both Hufstader and Plenty are being supported in their work in part through a Douglas Passaro International Award. In his scholarship application, Hufstader identified why studying Chilean men in a setting they are most comfortable is critical.
“Understanding how men experience their gender and its link to behavior is extremely relevant to the body of knowledge that informs public health,” he wrote. “In exploring these experiences, researchers gain a clearer perspective as to the interplay between the structural and interpersonal forces that dictate individual actions.”
Like Hufstader, Plenty admits that without the support of UIC SPH faculty, and especially his adviser, Robert Bailey, his research in Kenya would not have been possible.
“Dr. Bailey has been crucial in guiding me in my proposal,” Plenty said. “I wouldn’t have had a shot at conducting this project if it wasn’t for his established presence in Kisumu or his support of me as an epidemiologist.”
UIC SPH Caring For The World
The work being undertaken by Hufstader and Plenty demonstrates UIC SPH’s commitment to understanding and improving global health. That commitment was expanded in the spring of 2009 when the school launched a new Global Health Concentration program for its graduate students.
“The Global Health Concentration is designed to attract students at the master’s level who are interested in preparing for international careers in government, with international NGOs [non-governmental organizations] and health care agencies, industry and academic institutions,” said Alyson Lofthouse, the program’s coordinator.
The concentration offers MPH and MS students the knowledge, understanding and skills they need to tackle emerging global health problems.
UIC SPH has also added a Peace Corps Masters International program to its curriculum, to begin fall of 2009. This program, which will be the only one of its kind in the Midwest, allows students to graduate with both academic experience and Peace Corps participation.
UIC SPH Dean Paul Brandt-Rauf said the new program is especially critical now, as global health issues are really local health issues.
“The Peace Corps Master’s International Program allows our students to promote healthy populations and improve the quality of life in countries in need around the world,” he said.
Babette Neuberger, associate dean for academic affairs at UIC SPH, said students admitted into the program will first complete most of their course work on campus before taking their Peace Corps position. When they return to campus, they will complete a capstone project relating to their volunteer work with the Peace Corps.
“The beauty of this program is that it not only provides our students with a rich opportunity to learn first-hand about global health, but it also provides people of other countries the opportunity to meet their needs by welcoming well-trained students into their communities,” Neuberger said.
For Hufstader and Plenty, these global health opportunities offer invaluable academic and research experiences, helping them put into practice the theories they learn inside the classroom, to allow people around the world to live healthier lives.
“It [the Global Health Concentration] provides students the necessary academic training and faculty support to critically assess the burgeoning issues in public health,” Hufstader said. “I feel lucky to have had this incredible learning opportunity in Chile.”
>> Anthony Moretti and Tina Daniel
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