The inaugural function of the third batch of the Masters in Public Health (MPH) was held today at the conference hall of the Indian Institute of Public Health Shillong (IIPH-S).
Principal Secretary of Health, Sampath Kumar, graced the occasion as the chief guest. Professor Sandra Albert, the director of the institute, welcomed the new students to the institute.
The MPH was initiated by IIPH-S after the National Health Policy 2017 recommended the “creation of Public Health Management Cadre in all states based on public health or related disciplines…”.
At a broad level public health addresses health at the population level unlike clinical medicine, which often deals with health at an individual level.
The IIPH-S is the only institute in the North East currently offering a full time MPH – a two-year postgraduate degree. Thus far, 65 percent are doctors and the rest have a bachelor’s in allied health specialties. Fifty-two percent are from Scheduled Tribes and 75 percent are from the North East. The MPH is increasingly attracting students from across the country.
Kumar appreciated the institute’s focus on experiential learning, on continuous formative learning and the focus on learning outcomes as opposed to teaching or lectures. He provided an overview of the new health policy adopted by Meghalaya, referred to by the acronym MOTHER: Measurable Outcomes in Transforming Health sector through holistic approach with focus on women’s empowerment.
The policy focuses on preventive, enabling and curative aspects of health. He further elaborated on an assessment done by the health department on maternal deaths in Meghalaya. Teenage pregnancies and multiple pregnancies without adequate birth spacing are contributing to maternal deaths in Meghalaya. He requested IIPH-S to look into doing a behavioural change study to help address the issues of inadequate birth spacing as well as the ongoing Covid vaccine hesitancy.
