| Title: |
Non-physician health care workers: leading change in global health |
| Keywords: |
Universal health coverage
Primary Health Care
Human Resources
|
| Country: |
Germany
|
| Institution: |
Germany - Witten/Herdecke University, Witten
|
| Course coordinator: |
Ralf Weigel
Michael Galatsch
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| Date start: |
2025-11-10 |
| Date end: |
2025-11-21 |
| About duration and dates: |
Two weeks ; Application deadline 10.10.2025 |
| Classification: |
advanced optional
|
| Mode of delivery: |
Face to face
|
Course location:
Friede Springer endowed professorship for global child health, Witten/Herdecke University, Germany, Alfred-Herrhausen-Str. 50, 58448 Witten, Germany
tropEd Representative: Prof. Dr. med Ralf Weigel |
|
| ECTS credit points: |
3 ECTS credits
|
SIT:
90 hours: 35 hours contact time (25 hours lectures and seminars, 10 hours supervised group work), 55 hours self-directed (20 hours guided group work preparation, 35 hours individual reading and assessment preparation). |
|
| Language: |
English
|
Description:
At the end of the module, the student should be able to
1. Analyse roles and responsibilities of non-physician health care workers (npHCW) in the context of Universal Health Coverage.
2. Demonstrate a profound knowledge of npHCWs development opportunities for leadership, research and advocacy
3. Discuss service delivery models of npHCW in primary health care to ensure interprofessionalism and quality of care in low resource settings |
|
Assessment Procedures:
There are two assessments: a single best answer MCQ (40%) and a Poster presentation with discussion (60%). Both assessments are in class on the last day of the module.
Time for the MCQ will be 60 minutes. To familiarise students with the MCQ format, we conduct a 30 min mock-examination for the MCQ at the end of the first week, as a formative assessment. MCQ assess the knowledge and comprehension of the essential reading and discussions in class. The structure is typically a scenario, lead question and 4-5 choices to answer.
Each student prepares a poster during the second week that analysis roles and responsibilities of npHCWs in a self-selected setting. After the presentation (10 min), the student will answer questions by the two examiners (10 min) and peers if time allows.
The final mark will be calculated on the basis of both assessments (pass mark is 50%). Those who fail the module have the opportunity to re-sit for one or both failed assessments. They will need to present a new poster on a new topic and/or conduct a new MCQ test. For re-sits, students have to be physically present. Re-sits will be scheduled individually but not later than six weeks after the initial assessment. Re-sit marks are capped at 50%. |
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Content:
In week one, after the module introduction, we develop the theoretical foundations of the roles and responsibilities of npHCWs in low resource settings:
• The module focuses on the following cadres of npHCWs: nurses, midwifes, clinical officers and other types of non-physician clinicians, community health workers and volunteers.
• Basic statistics of npHCWs globally and regionally (cadres, geographical distribution, density, demographics including gender, qualifications, professional development and training, places of work, salary/remuneration,).
• Interprofessionalism: definition and underlying concepts
• npHCWs, primary health care and UHC: current global and selected national guidance and policies (including their role in task-shifting and task sharing, health promotion and prevention activities)
• Differences and similarities in approaches to teaching, research and advocacy between high and low- and middle-income settings
In week two, we underpin the theory with practical examples from the literature and participants’ and facilitators’ field experience. Students will apply their theoretical knowledge to their practice. Examples may include:
• Challenges and opportunities of the introduction of a specialist Clinical officer cadre in Sierra Leone
• Nursing care during the Ebola response in DR Congo: enablers and barriers
• Volunteers’ and Community health workers’ roles in the HIV response: experience from Malawi
• How work Medical Doctors and npHCW together in hospitals in Nigeria?
Time is dedicated during week two for students to develop their posters and presentations using their self-selected setting and cadre. If needed, we will offer technical guidance on poster development. |
|
Methods:
In week one, teacher-led methods are more dominant during the contact time: each day, there will be a 45 min introductory lecture for a specific topic building on and complementing the essential and optional prior reading that will be available in the Virtual Learning Environment. Besides, students visit an under- and postgraduate educational facility to assess a model of teaching, research and advocacy for nurses in an industrialised country.
In week two, teaching will be more student-led. Each day lecturers introduce a real-life scenario that illustrates a dilemma or challenge for a specific npHCW cadre in a concrete setting. Occasionally, these scenarios are presented via skype calls from countries from sub-Saharan Africa or Asia. Students, working in groups, analyse the scenario using guiding questions from lecturers. Following that, students present their findings to their peers and lecturers that discuss them and provide formative feedback. This learning will directly feed into the preparation of their posters. |
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Prerequisites:
Students who have completed a core course at a tropEd home institution are considered fluent in the English language as well as students who have completed at least a Bachelor course taught in the English language are considered fluent. Other students need to show results of 550 in the English TOEFL test or 213 computer-based or 79/80 internet-based or IELTS band 6.0 (not older than two years).
Students have to have a professional background in health (e.g. medicine, nursing, midwifery). |
|
Attendance:
Max. 15 students (number of tropEd students not limited) |
|
|
Selection:
Places will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. |
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Scholarships:
Not available |
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tropEd accreditation:
Accredited in Rabat GA Meeting, Feb 2020. This accreditation is valid until Feb 2025. |
|
Remarks:
Key resources:
• Year of the nurse and midwife 2020: https://www.who.int/news-room/campaigns/year-of-the-nurse-and-the-midwife-2020
• WHO factsheet nursing and midwifery: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/nursing-and-midwifery
• WHO guideline on health policy and system support to optimize community health worker programmes 2018 https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/275474/9789241550369-eng.pdf.
• Boniol M et al, 2019: Gender equity in the health workforce: analysis of 104 countries: https://www.who.int/hrh/resources/gender_equity-health_workforce_analysis/en/
• Triple Impact – how developing nursing will improve health, promote gender equality and support economic growth; London, 17 October 2016; http://www.appg.globalhealth.org.uk/
• Standards for improving the quality of care for children and young adolescents in health facilities 2018: https://www.who.int/maternal_child_adolescent/documents/quality-standards-child-adolescent/en/ |
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| Email Address: |
Ralf.Weigel@uni-wh.de |
| Date Of Record Creation: |
2020-03-03 05:51:22 (W3C-DTF) |
| Date Of Record Release: |
2020-03-03 11:58:24 (W3C-DTF) |
| Date Record Checked: |
2022-03-03 (W3C-DTF) |
| Date Last Modified: |
2024-09-06 09:36:07 (W3C-DTF) |
