Global Health MD

GLOBAL HEALTH MD

American University of Antigua College of Medicine (AUA) Global MD Program is conducted in collaboration with Florida International University (FIU).

The Global MD Program is a comprehensive, four-year longitudinal track in global health that is integrated into the curriculum at American University of Antigua College of Medicine.

Global Health has been defined as “the area of study, research and practice that places a priority on improving health and achieving equity in health for all people worldwide” by the Consortium of Universities for Global Health. Global Health addresses the health of populations in a global context and transcends the political boundaries of nations focusing on social determinants of health, healthcare disparities including infectious and non-communicable disease issues, human rights as well as economic development, and policy and system issues.

The purpose of the Global Health Track is to support and guide students in developing expertise in global health issues with the goal of subsequent career involvement involving patient care, service, policy making, research and education at a global level.
Students attending the Global Health Track will be introduced to the study of community and public health, primary care, epidemiology and treatment of communicable and non-communicable diseases on a global basis.

The required textbook is Global Health 101, 3rd edition, Richard Solnick, MPA, Yale, School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut,
ISBN-13: 9781284050547

The Global Health Track is open to all eligible entering medical students at AUA.

The 2-year BASIC SCIENCE Component is conducted on the campus of AUA in Antigua. It consists of five 2-week blocks (before and after semester one and after semesters two, three and four) and longitudinal coursework during semesters one through four. Lectures will cover a variety of Global Health topics including social determinants of health, medical anthropology, global health education, community based medicine, healthcare delivery systems, cultural competence, human rights, international relief organizations and projects, United Nations, World Health Organization, Pan American Health Organization, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, disaster response and management, communicable and non-communicable diseases, population research and epidemiology among others. In addition, students will be introduced to research methodology and will receive American Heart Association instructor training in BCLS and ACLS. The components include an introduction to Medical Spanish and are supplemented by a Global Health Journal Club. A minimum of 80% attendance is required in order to pass each block.

The CLINICAL SCIENCE component is conducted at FIU affiliated clinical sites in Florida and AUA affiliated clinical sites within the US and abroad. Students will participate in the advanced introduction to clinical medicine (FM1/IM1) at FIU and the AUA-FIU Graduate Clinical Core Rotation Certificate Program (upon successful completion of requirements and acceptance by the graduate certificate program admission committee). After completion of the graduate clinical core rotation certificate program, students will be eligible for elective rotations through FIU and AUA in the US and internationally. In addition to elective rotations in various medical fields, those rotations include research opportunities and travel medicine. Students will have the opportunity to join AUA faculty initiated international relief projects and to deepen their expertise in global health research. The clinical component will be supplemented by medical Spanish exposure and will include a capstone project in Global Health. 100% attendance is required during the clinical component. Please note that in order to be promoted to the clinical science component, students will have to meet the Graduate Clinical Core Rotation Certificate Program’s admissions criteria established by FIU including but not limited to passing USMLE Step 1.

At the completion of the program, a student should be able to:

• Demonstrate understanding of social determinants of health, health equity, social justice, and governmental policy in terms of their impact on the distribution of health services in low-resource settings within the United States and internationally

• Demonstrate understanding of health and human rights issues and determinants of health specific to immigrant, migrant, internally-displaced, and refugee populations

• Understand specific needs of the medically underserved and uninsured

• Demonstrate knowledge of effective advocacy strategies for health systems improvement within the global context

• Demonstrate the ability to communicate effectively and collaborate with the patient, family, and caregivers with sensitivity to sociocultural and health literacy issues so that the diagnosis and plan of care are clearly understood and pertinent to their specific situation

• Understand the epidemiology of global communicable and non-communicable diseases

• Identify and adapt evidence-based resources and tools for use in limited-resource healthcare settings

• Interact in a cross-cultural manner sufficient to deliver basic medical care, including working with translators

• Perform an efficient comprehensive physical examination when practicing supervised in an internationally located office, hospital, or skilled nursing setting, being mindful of cultural factors, including gender, modesty, and religious practices

• Use clinical skills to appropriately diagnose and treat patients under supervision in the context of local resource availability

• Select, perform, and interpret under supervision diagnostic procedures within the context of limited resource healthcare settings

• Formulate a plan of care that is relevant and practical in a specific cultural setting

• Demonstrate understanding of resources and issues pertinent to travel medicine, health risk prevention, health maintenance, and variations in healthcare services that are specific to international travel

• Discuss treatment plans based on knowledge of global influences, utilizing resources that include local, state, federal, and international agencies, as applicable

• Recognize his or her own practice limitations and seek consultation with other healthcare professionals and systems resources to provide optimal care within a global context

• Understand the organization, financing, and systems health indicators of international healthcare systems.

• The student should develop attitudes that encompass:

• Commitment to lifelong learning and contribution to the body of knowledge about global health

• Recognition of his or her own biases and stereotypes related to healthcare delivery in international settings

• The need to balance compassion, humanism, realism, and practicality in the consideration of health care delivered in specific global settings

• Respect for dignity and autonomy through self-care and self-determination within a cultural and global context

• A desire to advocate for systems change to improve the health of the community in which he or she practices.

Upon completion of the Global Health Track, completion of requirements of the Graduate Clinical Core Rotation Certificate Program and all requirements for graduation from AUA (including but not limited to passing all in-house and external exams and passing all required courses and clerkships) the student will receive the MD degree and the Global Health Certificate from AUA as well as the certificate of completion of the Graduate Clinical Core Rotation Certificate Program from FIU*.

*Students who complete the FlU Graduate Core Clinical Clerkship Certificate Program are not graduating from an LCME accredited medical education.