How to overcome limitations of expert-led fellowships for global health

1,500 health professionals respond to a call to join a global health fellowship programme. 60 of them can benefit from coaching and mentoring. What happens to the remainder? And is there a more inclusive way to support everyone?

Read the full article: https://redasadki.me/2024/02/29/the-limitations-of-expert-led-fellowships-for-global-health/

Coaching and mentoring programs sometimes called “fellowships” have been upheld as the gold standard for developing leaders in global health.

Tailored, one-on-one coaching can be incredibly effective in small, controlled environments.

When we step back and look at the big picture, we realize there is a problem: these programs are expensive and difficult to scale.

And, in global health, if it does not scale, it is not solving the problem.

Follow the link to learn why such “fellowships”, while well-intentioned, can perpetuate existing hierarchies within global health – and how we can overcome their limitations.

Further reading:
How does the scalability of peer learning compare to expert-led coaching ‘fellowships’?
https://redasadki.me/2024/02/28/how-does-peer-learning-compare-to-expert-led-coaching-fellowships/

Calculating the relative effectiveness of expert coaching, peer learning, and cascade training
https://redasadki.me/2024/02/27/calculating-the-relative-effectiveness-of-expert-coaching-peer-learning-and-cascade-training/

Why does cascade training fail?
https://redasadki.me/2024/02/26/why-does-cascade-training-fail/

Movement for Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030): grounding action in local realities to reach the unreached
https://redasadki.me/2024/02/05/movement-for-immunization-agenda-2030-ia2030-an-opportunity-for-global-partners-to-learn-how-to-ground-action-in-local-realities-to-reach-the-unreached/

“I am very proud”, says Nurse Panmwa Mwatunwa, from Plateau State, Shendam LGHA in Nigeria, to be a health professional because “I save people’s lives”.

Read her story: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/charlotte-mbu-kaben-2b565298_iwd-activity-7168983782811758594-w-1S

Continuous learning is lacking in immunization.

This was a key finding presented at Gavi’s Zero-Dose Learning Hub (ZDLH) webinar “Equity in Action: Local Strategies for Reaching Zero-Dose Children and Communities” on 24 January 2024.

This lack may be an underestimated barrier to the “Big Catch-Up” and finding zero-dose children

• If top-down knowledge flow alone was sufficient, why do equity gaps persist?

• Why is it difficult for staff tailor strategies to marginalized contexts?

• What inhibits applying global best practices locally?

• How could on-the-job peer learning uncover what works to reach underimmunized communities?

What would it take to embed continuous learning into practice? Read the blog post https://redasadki.me/2024/03/03/why-lack-of-continuous-learning-is-the-achilles-heel-of-immunization/

Teach to Reach 10 Partner Update: 105 organizations from 36 countries and 16 Ministries of Health will be joining the first Partner briefing for Teach to Reach 10 on Monday

Here is the link to follow the briefing: https://youtu.be/FtZKYpIeabI

The flagship theme for this tenth edition is 🌱 #Climate impacts on health: how health workers are co-creating local solutions with the communities they serve.

Developed by more than 1,300 health workers, the 📜 Manifesto for investing in health workers, a call to action to transform #globalhealth, will be presented at Teach to Reach 10.

Partners are also invited to propose questions and challenges for Teach to Reach.

Other topics on the agenda include:
💪 Empowering women: addressing the neglected needs in women’s health
🦠 Combatting #NTDs: the silent battle against neglected tropical diseases (NTDs)
❤️ #NCDs: how health workers partner with patients, families, and communities to support self-care
🦟 Locally-led solutions to roll back #malaria
📚 How to improve learning to boost health worker #performance

The Movement for Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030) is a global network of over 16,000 immunization leaders – primarily government health workers from districts and facilities – who have committed to achieve the goals of IA2030. Here are some of the topics that will be brought to Teach to Reach 10 by Movement Leaders:
🎉 Celebrating 50 years of the Expanded Programme for Immunization (#EPI)
🌀 Integration of #polio eradication efforts into routine immunization (RI)
🌞 Yellow fever vaccination
🛡️Local solutions that support #HPV vaccination demand and uptake
🚫 Zero-dose children: what works to identify and reach in local communities

The Geneva Learning Foundation’s first Fellow of Photography, Chris de Bode, will lead a visual storytelling workshop with health care workers from 44 countries on 18 March 2024.

Learn more: https://x.com/DigitalScholarX/status/1764710203629486170?s=20

“Follow your passion and embrace lifelong learning,” advises Rosemary Adejoh-Adaji, a public health specialist from Abuja, Nigeria.

Read Rosemary’s story for International Women’s Day #IWD2024 https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:share:7170342408742653953/

Discover the 177 women health professionals who shared their experience for International Women’s Day #IWD2024
https://learningsi.notion.site/Honor-Roll-Contributors-to-the-2024-International-Women-s-Day-Call-to-action-41f26f8007794aa6a798a4a447412fbd?pvs=4

Ahead of the International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024, The Geneva Learning Foundation (TGLF) invited women in its global network of over 60,000 health workers to share their experience. In light of the challenges faced by women health workers, including those posed by conflict, disease, and climate change.

TGLF sought to amplify their voices and perspectives on shaping the future, asking:

1. What advice would you share with your daughter (or another young woman) who wishes to pursue a career in health or humanitarian work?

2. In a world facing widespread challenges, what difference can women and girls make to build a better future? What is needed for the next generation of women and girls to live healthy, fulfilled lives no matter who they are or where they are born?

Responses are currently being shared through TGLF's various social media platforms, fostering a global dialogue that honors women's wisdom and visions for a more equitable and sustainable future.

This post is part of a series, follow this link to learn more https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:share:7165652876147552256

Register for the #IWD2024 event to connect with fellow women health professionals https://www.learning.foundation/iwd

Women’s voices from the frontlines of health and humanitarian action #IWD2024

Imagine being able to sit down with women who work for health: a community health worker in Nigeria, a nurse in India, or a doctor in Brazil… and listen to their stories of triumph and struggle.

“Women Inspiring Women” makes that possible, bringing together voices that are rarely heard on the global stage.

TGLF reached out to women in its global network of more than 60,000 health workers, inviting them to share their heartfelt advice and vision for the future with young women and girls.

The responses are raw, honest, and deeply moving.

From remote villages to urban slums, women work to build a better future for their communities.

What makes this collection truly unique is its authenticity and diversity.

Read the press release: https://redasadki.me/2024/03/07/womens-voices-from-the-frontlines-of-health-and-humanitarian-action/

Download the report: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10783218

Gavi’s #VaccinesWork blog features The Geneva Learning Foundation’s #IWD2024 collection.

Eyewitness reports: women inspiring women
https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/eyewitness-reports-women-inspiring-women

For International Women’s Day 2024, the Geneva Learning Foundation is sharing a collection of stories by  women health professionals who share messages with their daughters and the wider world.

Download: The Geneva Learning Foundation. (2024). Women inspiring women: International Women’s Day 2024 (1.0). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10783218

Women inspiring women now has its own web page, please share: https://www.learning.foundation/women

Join us in amplifying the voices of these extraordinary women and creating a world where every girl can thrive. #IWD2024 #gender #globalhealth

In a warming world, the health of our communities rests on the shoulders of women
https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/warming-world-health-our-communities-rests-shoulders-women

Women are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis, but they are not just victims. Making up 70% of the health care workforce, women are on the frontlines of the response to the health crisis unfolding because of climate change – we can’t afford not to support them.

This Gavi article by Kelly Warden is based on the Geneva Learning Foundation’s report https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10783218

Dear Scholars of The Geneva Learning Foundation,

As the holy month of #Ramadan begins, The Geneva Learning Foundation extends its warmest wishes to the Muslim members of our global community of Scholars. We recognize the significance of this sacred time and the values it embodies: reflection, compassion, and unity.

As Scholars, we believe that education is a powerful tool for change, a philosophy that can guide us in our pursuit of a better world.

As Scholars, it is our duty to engage in critical reflection and use our knowledge and skills to address the systemic issues that plague our society.

By examining the root causes of injustice and working towards solutions grounded in empathy, understanding, and respect for all human beings, we can make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who are most vulnerable.

In a world where the legacies of colonization and racism continue to perpetuate injustice and suffering for girls, boys, men, and women, let us reflect on how we can contribute to creating a more peaceful and equitable society through education.

May your acts of kindness, generosity, and intellectual curiosity inspire others to join us in our mission to build a world where every child can thrive, regardless of their background or circumstances.

As a community of Scholars from 137 countries, let us defy distance and boundaries to stand together in solidarity, united by our shared vision of a more just and compassionate world.

May this Ramadan bring you and your loved ones peace, joy, and a renewed sense of purpose.

With heartfelt regards,

The Geneva Learning Foundation

Do you work for health? Your are invited to a visual storytelling workshop with health care workers from 44 countries. The Geneva Learning Foundation’s first Fellow of Photography, Chris de Bode, will lead this workshop.

544 health care workers from 44 countries have already confirmed their participation. 80% of participants are sub-national staff working in fragile contexts. Most work for their country’s ministry of health.

Follow this link to see the schedule & confirm your participation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMBbdb4yXVE

Learn more – and see some amazing pictures – by following the links below.

Chris deBode spent decades on assignments, traveling around the globe for various NGOs, magazines, and newspapers.

Now, he has partnered with the Geneva Learning Foundation (TGLF) to share his experience with practitioners who are there every day.

The workshop is reserved for Contributors to the 2022 and 2023 Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030) Movement’s International Photo Exhibitions.

In 2022 and 2023, over 2,000 photos were shared by immunization staff from all over the world.

“Technical knowledge is not decisive in making your picture”, says Chris. “The person behind the camera makes the difference. You are the source of your image.”

Health professionals from the following countries will be participating: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Congo, Democratic Republic of the, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, United States, Zambia.

Photo by Chris deBode: Eleven-year-old Wilberforce runs along an unpaved road near his home in Gulu, Northen Uganda where he lives with his parents and 6 siblings. He says: “I want to be the fastest. I want my parents, my school and country to be proud of me. Every day I run. I dream of coming home with the biggest trophy.”

Read Chris’s commentary about 1,000 photos shared by health workers to show that people make #vaccineswork https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/reflections-chris-de-bode-takes-people-make

Learn more about World Immunization Week https://www.learning.foundation/world-immunization-week

Download Book I (2022) It takes people to make #VaccinesWork https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7010196

Watch the inauguration of the First International Photography Exhibition for Immunization Agenda 2030 https://youtube.com/live/MM36F0A-kfw

Watch the Special Event: World Immunization Week 2023 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBveZXzMm3c

Watch the Special Event: World Immunization Week 2022 https://youtube.com/live/3UTHUhJhE_Q

Eyewitness reports: women inspiring women
For International Women’s Day 2024, the Geneva Learning Foundation is sharing a collection of stories by women health professionals who share messages with their daughters and the wider world.

https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/eyewitness-reports-women-inspiring-women