Population Health: UW & Aga Khan University partnership leads to research, learning, and health collaborations

The University of Washington and the Aga Khan University have partnered substantially over the past years to advance global population health and link their institutions. Through these collaborations, students, faculty, and researchers have benefited from the shared expertise and exchange in a range of areas and disciplines.

Read more about the history and impact of this partnership and the Office of Global Affairs and Global Innovation Fund’s involvement below:

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“There were a lot of synergies between our two institutions not just in terms of our social justice missions, but around the values of what this partnership holds,” Farzana Karim-Haji, director of the Aga Khan University Partnerships Office, said. “The Population Health Initiative at UW draws parallels to AKDN’s Quality of Life Initiative, where both are focused on a holistic view of improving the overall human condition from a variety of aspects in health, education, poverty alleviation, climate change, etc.”

Study abroad sparks hard conversations about race and equity

For two days in late August, more than a million people inundate West London to celebrate one of the world’s largest street festivals—the Notting Hill Carnival.

Elaborate floats and colorful-costumed performers wind their way through streets to the sound of steel bands and calypso music. It’s a tribute to the traditional Afro-Caribbean carnivals of the early 19^th century that celebrated the abolition of slavery.

What stood out most for UW School of Public Health student Eric King wasn’t the vibrant sounds or endless sea of people, but rather the sight of British police officers embracing and dancing with carnival-goers.

“I didn’t notice any law officials with firearms. This was different from my experience as an African-American man living in the United States,” says King, then a public health major and now a graduate student in the School’s Department of Health Services. “It speaks to the prominence of gun culture in the U.S. as well as the climate created when law officers are viewed as members of the community instead of controlling outsiders.”

King (BS, Public Health ’16) was attending a four-week exploration seminar called Dark Empire: Race, Health and Society in Britain, which examines the presence and well-being of minorities in Britain, who now make up 14 percent of the country’s 64 million residents. Students explore the social, emotional and physical determinants of health within the framework of Britain’s history and multiculturalism.

Boosting global health partnerships for Chinese universities

Supported by the Global Innovation Fund, a landmark symposium hosted by the UW last week brought together leaders and faculty from five Chinese universities, across the UW campus and the Seattle community. “Collaborating with Chinese colleagues is a tremendously high priority, both personally for faculty and institutionally here at UW,” said Judy Wasserheit, chair of the Department of Global Health and symposium co-chair.

Center for Global Health Nursing promotes ‘health that transcends borders’

Sarah Gimbel and Pam Kohler co-direct the UW School of Nursing Center for Global Health Nursing. The center pushes for the voices of nurses to be included in global health conversations. The center will support nursing students who want to learn and serve overseas, as well as international students who want to study at the UW. Likewise, a global health perspective allows nurses from the U.S. and abroad to learn from one another. “When we say ‘global,’” Gimbel said, “we’re talking about health that transcends borders.”

The Global Innovation Fund supports projects sponsored by the Center for Global Health Nursing.

Solving the global problem of mental health illness

Professor Deepa Rao and her colleagues say stigma, poor mental health, and substance abuse drive many global health problems, including diabetes, preterm birth, trauma injuries, self-harm and motor vehicle deaths. More than one billion people suffer from a mental health illness or substance abuse problem. “Mental health has been a neglected disease in global health,” says Rao, co-director of the UW Global Mental Health Program.

The next step is improving treatment. The Global Mental Health Program seeks philanthropic support for faculty, pilot research projects, and student scholarships and fellowships. Rao and her colleagues are conducting research and training to address gaps in global mental health interventions. One successful example is Professor Debra Kaysen’s therapy work in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where women are traumatized from domestic violence and rape.

New device shows great promise for in HIV prevention in Africa

Recent studies in Africa led by University of Washington researchers and others showed that a vaginal ring infused with a microbicide helped prevent HIV infection in more than half of women who used the device correctly.

Global Health professor to New York Times: “Zika virus a ‘a temperature-driven eruption'”

Weather and warm temperatures are playing an important role in the spread of Zika virus, says University of Washington professor Kristine Ebi in a recent New York Times article.

Grad student gets Young Investigator Award at International AIDS Conference

UW School of Nursing Ph.D. student Jillian Pintye has experience fighting health disparities across the globe. She was recognized at the recent 20th International AIDS Conference for her research investigating connections between male circumcision and disease transmission in Uganda and Kenya.

Read a conversation with Jillian Pintye from UW Health Sciences NewsBeat…

‘Support global health workers’, urges alumna in TEDx talk

At last month’s TEDxUofW event, UW alumna Julia Robinson spoke candidly about the importance of human resources in solving global health challenges like AIDS. New technologies are getting a lot of buzz, she told the crowd, but supporting health workers is the best way to solve health challenges globally.

“I think technology is amazing, but I also believe… that technology needs people to implement it. We need to put that same level of effort into supporting health workers.”

Julia is Deputy Director of Côte d’Ivoire Programs and Director of Advocacy Programs at Health Alliance International, a center of the UW Department of Global Health. She earned Master of Social Work and Master of Public Health degrees from the University of Washington.

Watch Julia Robinson’s TEDx talk…

UW researchers find obesity on the rise worldwide

In a review of over 1,700 studies from 188 countries, researchers from the University of Washington’s Institute of Health Metrics & Evaluation found that more than two billion people are now obese worldwide. No country has been able to curb rising obesity rates over the past 30 years.

Study leader and School of Public Health professor Christopher Murray as well as leaders from the World Health Organization and other national and international health agencies have commented on the results.