![[Navigation Map2]](images/deve.gif)
Developing Countries' Health Managers Develop Skills
Health care managers in developing countries face multiple challenges. The Managing Health Programs in Developing Countries course, now in its eighth year, prepares health professionals to optimize their resources and anticipate future needs and opportunities.
Course director Paul Campbell and other faculty teach students skills in managing health facilities, health systems, and health programs. Campbell explains: "We design the classes for international, mid-career health professionals who don't have the time to enroll in lengthy degree programs."
Paul Campbell, lecturer in the Departments of Health Policy and Management
and Population and International Health, directs the Managing Health Programs
in Developing Countries course.
Campbell describes the course as an intense two-month period: "Students attend lectures, work in discussion groups, read the latest literature, review case studies, analyze problem sets, learn computer skills, and visit local health care facilities." He adds, "They also work on an independent study project that applies management skills and concepts to an issue they face at home. For instance, if a student directs an HIV/AIDS clinic, then he or she may develop interventions for IV-drug users or prostitutes."
Health care programs in developing countries endeavor to offer benefits found in more developed countries--while avoiding the common pitfall of high costs. "In many countries," says Campbell, "there is an increasing involvement of the private sector, which governments need to coordinate and regulate. There are also changes in medical technology, such as the wider use and cost of drugs."
Population changes also lead to health care changes. Aging populations require a transition from treating infectious diseases to preventing and treating emerging chronic diseases. "Longer life spans are partly the result of successful health service systems," says Campbell. "However heart disease, cancer, and stroke are costly to care for, and they demand different control strategies than those appropriate for infectious diseases. The core health management skills have lasted over time, but the way we teach them has changed to reflect the changes in environment."
Another environmental change has been caused by health care reform. More autonomy has been given to lower-ranking managers as health care has been decentralized from national governments down to regional and local levels. "The assumption is that smaller is better, but it's only better if there are skilled managers on the local level," says Campbell.
Students travel to this course from countries including South Africa, Thailand, Ghana, India, Japan, Nigeria, and Bangladesh. Crosscul-tural learning and teaching have many challenges. According to Campbell, this challenge extends beyond the classroom: "We consider our students three-dimensionally. In just two months they must adapt to the country, to the school, and to an educational style that is often very different for them."
Nerissa Majid, training and development officer, assists students with their living situations once they arrive. "For some, it's the first time they've been to the United States," she says. "Most stay in a dormitory together with people from different countries. This can raise issues among students whose countries may be fighting with one another. Some students feel guilty for leaving their families for two months, and there can be homesickness. We've planned the course so they can have a smooth adjustment, but for someone who hasn't been in school for a long time it can be overwhelming."
"People have to really want to do the program because it's very tough," adds Campbell. "They have to both meet our entrance requirements and find sponsors to provide tuition funds." Sponsors have included the World Health Organization, Pan American Health Organization, United States Agency for International Development, and African-American Institute, as well as government ministries, companies, and other nongovernmental organizations.
Campbell concludes, "It's an important experience for HSPH, because the participants are senior professionals making a large impact on their countries during this global age. They are people seeking to be increasingly capable health managers in a rapidly changing and growing world."
Above, The HSPH Managing Health Programs in Developing Countries team. From left to right: Scott Gordon, Mary Bachman, Nerissa Majid, Godwyn Bernardo, Lisa Gourd, Fei Lan, Katherine Anderson, and Paul Campbell.
