Global Health Program

About the Global Health Program

Students at Great Wall

Global Health Objectives

The Global Health program is responsible for the development of an international curriculum for the College of Medicine at the University of Toledo.  The curriculum includes academic, clinical and research experiences ranging primarily from 1-3 months in duration.  These academic rotations involve a variety of healthcare institutions ranging from academic centers in major cities to community healthcare clinics in rural populations.  The clinical experiences are opportunities specified in The University of Toledo, College of Medicine policy on international travel.

Educational Experiences

Students in front of ambulance These educational experiences are in two broad categories.  The first clinical opportunity experience will be in academic institutions at various locations ranging from the Far East to Central and South America.  This rotation provides the student with a unique academic experience with clinical disease entities unique to these specific regions.  These institutions will often have state-of-the-art facilities but access to care and their practice of medicine can often be quite different from the US healthcare system.  These rotations will typically focus on a single institution in a specific clinical department throughout this rotation.  This allows the student to develop a rapport with the international faculty and assimilate their medical knowledge in an environment different from their prior training and educational experiences.  The Global Health curriculum outlines goals and objectives for this international clinical rotation that will provide the student with a more intensive integration into the international healthcare system, avoiding the commonly seen “medical tourist” rotation that often can occur in these sophisticated international settings.

The second type of clinical rotation opportunity will consist of a medical mission/rural community hospital experience.  In this educational opportunity, students work in a rural setting primarily providing outpatient and preventive medical care.  This may involve working with large, indigent patient populations with limited ancillary facilities.  The focus of these rotations is on unique disease entities, specifically infectious diseases and communicable diseases that are prevalent in this region but may not be seen throughout their clinical training experience in the US.  Along with providing medical care, this environment will focus on preventive medicine programs that are incorporated within this region and commonly involve participation in public health programs for this community.  There is a specific focus on clinical exam skills in evaluating patients since often in these settings, ancillary resources are limited (i.e. MRI, CT scans, laboratory facilities).

Students in clinical setting

Transportation Summary

In most Global Health experiences students will be traveling in groups of 1-4.  Transportation arrangements for the students will be made through the Office of Academic Engagement.  Housing arrangements at the rotation sites will typically be on or near the hospital property and within walking distance of the hospital facility or clinic.  Transportation provisions will be arranged at each location to assure adequate access to other transportation throughout the region.

Implementation/Logistics

The current Global Health Program has established clinical experiences at several international, academic locations.  A memorandum of understanding has been signed by the Global Health affiliate institution and the University of Toledo Medical Center as specified by the General Counsel of the Health Science campus.  This agreement outlines the general academic responsibilities of each institution and serves as a framework for faculty and student exchanges and other collaborative agreements.  A site visit by The University of Toledo’s Global Health Program is required to assure that this rotation site can provide an adequate academic experience and identify specific rotations available for these students.  Other areas that have been addressed in these Global Health discussions include transportation, housing, security, language issues and overall student supervision.  All housing, transportation and other logistical arrangements for each site have been approved bythe University’s Global Health Committee.

Last Updated: 6/27/22