We are thrilled to announce to you our new project: the Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy Priority Setting Partnership (HDP-PSP). Between now and August, we will be setting a top 10 of priorities for future research on high blood pressure disorders of pregnancy, such as preeclampsia, in Ghana. Last week, the HDP-PSP Advisory Committee consisting of 8 patients / survivors / carers / community representatives, 4 clinicians and 1 policy maker met for the first time at GREATER ACCRA REGIONAL HOSPITAL to kick off this important patient-led initiative which is the first to be conducted in Ghana >
The Planetary Health field seeks to understand the inextricable link between health and the environment. Embedding planetary health education in curricula is urgently needed to deliver new transdisciplinary, intersectoral solutions for communities facing complex planetary challenges. The “Catalysing Transformative Change in Planetary Health Education” (CATA-Earth) project has been accepted by the European Commission on Capacity Building in Higher Education. CATA-Earth brings together 6 Higher Education Institutions (HEI), including the UMC Utrecht. The overall objective of CATA-Earth is to build capacity for designing and delivering innovative community-driven planetary health education in climate-vulnerable regions in Asia and to create a new generation of change-makers with actionable planetary health knowledge and skills. >
The Stillbirth in High Burden Settings: Ample Room for Improvement using Biomarkers and Ultrasound Technologies (iTECH) project team (Assoc Prof. Kerstin Klipstein and Dr. Marcus Rijken, Julius Global Health) met recently at the Wellcome leap’s In Utero network meeting 4-6 March 2024 in Dublin, Ireland. The iTECH project led by Dr. Sam Ali, a UMC Utrecht Global Health Support Fellow alumni, aims to develop and validate a prediction model for use at the point of care for diagnosing and managing high-risk pregnancies and reducing the burden of stillbirths in Uganda, sub-Saharan Africa, and globally. >
On February 13-16, 2024, the ReSViNET foundation organized its 8th RSVVW conference on novel RSV preventative and therapeutic interventions in Mumbai, India. Researchers from across the globe got together for a four-day meeting to exchange insights on preventative and therapeutic interventions for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The conference was a great opportunity for colleagues and stakeholders involved in the RSV GOLD Studies to come together and share valuable research experiences. >
We are excited to announce the launch of five summer school courses that promise unique insights into various dimensions of Global Health. These courses range from an introduction to global health to courses specializing in surgery, obstetrics, maternal and child health, implementation science, ethics and equity from a global perspective. Global Health UMC Utrecht invites healthcare professionals, students, and enthusiasts to join these educational journeys, connect with like-minded individuals, and contribute to the advancement of global healthcare. By sharing knowledge and experiences, the aim is to work towards building a healthier and more equitable world. >
On 17-18 January ’24, the CAPSTONE consortium came together (virtually) to have the first kick-off consortium meeting. The European – West African CAPSTONE project aims to build capacity at the participating higher education institutes to develop and deliver transdisciplinary challenge-based education to address the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases in Ghana and The Gambia. This will improve access to treatment of a wide array of non-communicable diseases, including hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. >
On Wednesday, the January 17th – A high-level delegation from the University of Tartu (Estonia) visited the University Medical Center Utrecht (UMCU) to explore collaborative opportunities and strengthen ties between the two institutions. The visit marked a significant step towards fostering academic collaboration and research partnerships between the University of Tartu and UMC Utrecht. Both institutions expressed their enthusiasm for future joint initiatives that can contribute to advancements in various fields of study. >
The European Congress on Global Health 2023 (#ECTMIH2023) concluded on the 23rd of November, after an inspiring week of shared exploration and commitment to planetary health. The innovative congress commenced with the pre-conference workshops of the ECTMIH Academy, chaired by Global Health fellow Dr. Martin Heine on Sunday 19th of November. On the 20th of November, ECTMIH itself started and convened over 1600 participants from all over the globe at the heart of Utrecht, at the Tivoli Vredenburg and Social Impact factory venues. The overarching ECTMIH theme was “Shaping the future of equitable and planetary Health”, and include over 100 planetary and parallel sessions over four days with We are very proud of all the contributions of the Julius Global Health fellows during the ECTMIH congress, either as organizers, speakers, chairs or volunteers. >
On October 17th, 2023, a remarkable initiative took flight in Nairobi, Kenya, as African institutions, in collaboration with esteemed northern partners including Julius Global Health (UMC Utrecht), launched the second phase of the Sub-Saharan African Consortium for Advanced Biostatistics (SSACAB II) training program. The UMC Utrecht was represented by Assoc. Prof. Kerstin Klipstein-Grobusch and Prof. Daniel Oberski. >
After the success of 2022 the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa invited the Dutch team again for the 2023 version of the summerschool from October 23rd-27th in Blantyre, Malawi.There is an urgent need to train new surgical and gynaecological residents in all aspects of surgical oncology. Cancer is the second most important cause of death worldwide and as many as 70% of the deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. The WHO has predicted a 70% increase of cancer diagnoses in Sub Saharan Africa by 2030. Together with the Malawian team, Dutch surgeons; Prof. Kees van Laarhoven, Prof. Jurre van Kesteren and Prof. Remco van Egmond, and gynaecologist and Julius Global Health affiliate; Marcus Rijken have co-organized this summerschool, which will cover a wide range of topics including pathology, staging, all sorts of cancer and palliative care. Participants are surgical and gyne residents from Malawi. >
On September 12th it was announced that Vice-Chair for the 2023 European Congress on Global Health (ECTMIH2023) Joyce Browne (UMCU), was awarded financial support from the VanWalree Fund of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). The fund was awarded to realize innovative projects that foster sustainable knowledge transfer between professional peers. >
The ECTMIH organizing committee has awarded ten scholarships to support researchers based in lower-and middle-income countries (LMICs) to attend the European Congress on Global Health (ECTMIH) 2023 in Utrecht this upcoming November! ECTMIH2023 is deeply committed to equity, and we recognize the unfair barriers participants from LMIC countries face in attending international conferences. These include often higher travel expenditures, registration fees, visa difficulties and stressful uncertainties of its approval. In response to these structural #injustices, we are happy to have been able to establish ECTMIH scholarships to support researchers based in lower-and middle-income countries (LMICs) and with a #refugee backgrounds in the Netherlands. We hope that ECTMIH2023 can serve as a platform to discuss and address global inequities and injustices with #meaningful involvement and inclusive representation of global expertise.We gratefully acknowledge the support form our partners supporting the educational grant: the Aletta Jacobs School of Public Health; Dutch Association for Tropical Medicine (NVTG); SANO; Utrecht University – Dynamics of Youth; and Girard de Millet van Coehoorn Foundation. >