Title:	Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights: Organizing Effective Responses (SRH Responses)
Keywords:	Sexual and reproductive health and rights Health promotion Gender Equity Advocacy
Country:	Netherlands
Institution:	The Netherlands - Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), Amsterdam
Course coordinator:	Marielle Le Mat
Date start:	2025-04-14
Date end:	2025-05-01
About duration and dates:	The duration of the course is 2.5 weeks of full time learning. Application deadline is 2 months before the start date of the course. If space is available and no visa required, students can apply until 4 weeks prior to the first course day.
Classification:	advanced optional
Mode of delivery:	Face to face
Course location: KIT Royal Tropical Institute, Amsterdam PO Box 95001, 1090 HA Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tel: +31-20-5688256. Fax +31-20-5688677 Website: http://www.kit.nl TropEd Representative: Lisanne Gerstel (L.Gerstel@kit.nl)
ECTS credit points:	3 ECTS credits
SIT: 84 SIT: 36 contact hours and 48 self-study hours (including written examination).
Language:	English
Description: At the end of this course participants will be able to: ● Describe and analyse key components of equitable SRHR responses ● Analyse existing SRHR responses from equity perspective and provide recommendations on how to enhance equitable access and quality of care ● Use evidence to formulate and advocate for context-appropriate strategies to address issues related to SRHR
Assessment Procedures: This module has 1 assessment and 1 requirement. Students need to pass the advocacy assignment (minimum score 6/10) to pass the course. A. Advocacy assignment (100%) ● Topic: Participants should write an advocacy assignment on a specific SRHR topic, addressing a specific marginalised group (LO1, LO2, and LO3). It is an individually written assignment that students work on during self-study hours. ● Length: 1,500 words ( +/- 10%) ● Students receive a personal feedback sheet for the advocacy assignment. ● A plenary feedback session will be held for general feedback on the assignment, within 2 weeks after publication of the grade. ● The passing grade is 6. ● Those students who fail can re-sit the advocacy assignment on a specified date within 6 weeks after the grade was received. ● A standard plagiarism check will be done by the Ouriginal software. B. Peer feedback (requirement) ● There will be one round of peer feedback, in which students give feedback on two of their peers’ draft advocacy assignments ● Peer feedbacks need to be uploaded online at specifically indicated times so as to allow peers to use their feedback. ● The peer feedback needs to meet minimum standards. ● No re-sit options are offered for the peer feedback but students who don’t meet requirements are warned and get a chance to adapt during the course.
Content: The following subjects are covered during the course: ● Key aspects of SRHR responses on specific SRHR topics, such as adolescents and youth-friendly SRH services and education, responsive family planning, maternal and newborn health, gender based violence, HIV services, menstrual health ● Principles of good response strategies, including client-centred approaches to SRHR, leave no one behind, stigma and discrimination, gender-transformative approaches, combination-prevention, quality of care, accountability and participation, and evidence-based advocacy ● Peer feedback, collaborative skills development and professional community building
Methods: A variety of learning methods are used, most importantly: ● Interactive lectures (in-person and occasionally Zoom), that use a combination of lecturing and applying it in classroom exercises ● Cross learning e.g., learning from each other’s experiences, reflection of students’ own experiences ● Case studies, simulation (role play), group work ● Student presentations ● Online Q&A, discussion, peer feedback ● Writing advocacy assignment (assignment) ● Practical exercise on how to do motivational interviewing (facilitated by the Dutch Municipal Health Service - GGD) The educational approach is based on the following principles: ● Takes the knowledge and (working) experience of the participants as a key contribution ● Is problem-solving oriented and is focused on the practical application of the course content. ● Is competency based: it is aimed at improving the competencies of participants to implement and evaluate context-specific approaches to address health problems.
Prerequisites: ● Bachelor’s degree or equivalent academic training in either medicine or another field related to health care, such as health sciences, health economics, social sciences, or nursing ● A minimum of three years of health-related work experience in health systems, not limited to (organisation of) individual patient care ● English proficiency at the level of TOEFL 5.5 or IELTS 6.5 (certificate is not required) ● Computer and internet literacy; the participant should be able to use a computer access to wifi networks, and working-level understanding of Microsoft Office software (e.g. Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Adobe (PDF). Students will be introduced to the e-learning platform.
Attendance: Maximum number of students 35; The number of tropEd students is not limited. Minimum number of students is 12
Selection: • First come, first served basis
Fees: € 1,980 (tropEd € 1,782) € 1,584 (early bird, when you pay more than 3 months before the course starts)
Scholarships: There are no current specific scholarships for this course, for latest updates see
Major changes since initial accreditation: Major changes include: - Amendment of learning objective 3 from communication skills to advocacy skills. Accordingly, the assignment has been changed from writing a press release to developing an advocacy plan, including a analysis. These changes are based on recurring student feedback that the press release was considered to have become less relevant, whereas the advocacy session is usually evaluated as highly relevant and a key part of SRHR programming; - Reduction in the content of the course, in line with fewer ECTS credits. For instance, the following sessions are removed: o Communication skills – in line with revised objective and assignment o Continuum of care - covered elsewhere in the masters; o Family planning o Journal club o Co-creation sessions – in line with evaluations these were deemed this exercise less relevant; - The open book exam has been removed, to reduce exam burden in line with fewer ECTS credits. - The peer feedback in the advocacy assignment is now a requirement and no longer 20% of the grade.
Student evaluation: Provide a summary of the student evaluations (positive and negative aspects) and any other major feedback received. The student evaluations show a high appreciation of the course. They value the applied nature and learning about different responses (interventions) to improve SRHR for all. The lecturers and facilitators have on the ground experience and share this experience in the lecture. 1. The co-creation sessions continued to be confusing to students as the objective was not always clear or convincing. 2. Some sessions (maternal health and fragile settings) require students to prepare student presentations in groups. This preparation needed better emphasis and warning to students. Students might not have taken it seriously and this affects other students. 3. On exams: students raised that the press release wasn’t the most relevant form of public communication for their work context. Moreover, 3 exams for one course was deemed too many.
Lessons learned: 1. The co-creation sessions are removed from the programme 2. An alternative activity is thought of for the fragile settings session. In the new setup, only the maternal health session will require preparation 3. The assignment has been changed to advocacy-related assignment 4. Continue to invite highly experienced facilitators who work in the field of SRHR responses
tropEd accreditation: Accredited in Amesterdam in October 2016. Re accredited in Edinburgh in June 2018 and in Witten in June 2023. Re accredited in Cuernavaca in June 2024.This accreditation is valid until June 2029.
Email Address:	L.Gerstel@kit.nl
Date Of Record Creation:	2013-06-28 03:14:02 (W3C-DTF)
Date Of Record Release:	2013-06-28 03:20:57 (W3C-DTF)
Date Record Checked:	2021-03-18 (W3C-DTF)
Date Last Modified:	2024-07-17 10:37:21 (W3C-DTF)