Phase 1: Training Initiatives
Training is critical for building a sustainable capacity for environmental health research in Perú. Through our GEOHealth Hub planning grant we identified three key areas for environmental health research and training which comprise the three areas of focus of the linked U01 research grant proposal: indoor air pollution, outdoor air pollution and extreme weather events linked to human health. We offered short, medium and long term training opportunities to professionals from Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia, that contributed to increasing the interest and quality of research in the region.
Research Courses
As part of our training initiatives, we offered an annual one-week workshop on environmental health research methods to more than 150 professionals from Perú, Bolivia, and Ecuador with instructors from Emory University, University of Georgia, Johns Hopkins University, Universidad de Chile, and Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia. This training course focused on core topics of environmental health, i.e., environmental epidemiology, statistics, exposure assessment, and toxicology, as well as bioethics, and practical skills as STATA, study designs, and data management. It also included case studies in environmental health, preferentially from Perú. This course was developed based on a successful three day training course we organized in Lima in 2014 (Click here for details - document is in Spanish).
A second training initiative was an annual course in environmental health at the well-established Universidad de Chile Summer School (EIV). The GEOHealth Hub funded 25 researchers to attend two-weeks of environmental health topics on issues of environmental and occupational health, epidemiology and biostatistics with nationally and internationally renowned speakers. Students attending the EIV had the added benefit of taking courses on other public health topics offered in addition to those in environmental health.
A second training initiative was an annual course in environmental health at the well-established Universidad de Chile Summer School (EIV). The GEOHealth Hub funded 25 researchers to attend two-weeks of environmental health topics on issues of environmental and occupational health, epidemiology and biostatistics with nationally and internationally renowned speakers. Students attending the EIV had the added benefit of taking courses on other public health topics offered in addition to those in environmental health.
Environmental Health Scholars
The Environmental Scholars Program supported young researchers to participate in ongoing research projects and gain research experience through an apprenticeship model. These students were actively engaged in data collection and analysis in these studies. Click here to see our Environmental Scholars during fieldwork activities in the region of Piura, Perú in 2016.
One on One Training
We funded one-on-one mentorships to Peruvian environmental health researchers by bringing investigators from Chile and the US to Perú. The goal with this model was to train local investigators, who are already engaged in research, in more advanced methods in environmental health.
Graduate Training
The GEOHealth Hub gave three scholarships for students pursuing their PhD degrees at Johns Hopkins University and the Universidad de Chile, who are now engaged in research in renowned Universities as investigators and faculty.
In addition, with a partnership from the School of Sciences and Philosophy and the School of Public Health, the GEOHealth Hub collaborated on developing a graduate program in Environmental Sciences with mention in Environmental Health at the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia. The curriculum suited local research and programmatic needs and enrolled 9 students in its first cohort.
In addition, with a partnership from the School of Sciences and Philosophy and the School of Public Health, the GEOHealth Hub collaborated on developing a graduate program in Environmental Sciences with mention in Environmental Health at the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia. The curriculum suited local research and programmatic needs and enrolled 9 students in its first cohort.
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