Online certificate course on leadership in public health developed by the George Institute for Global Health, India and the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) was launched at the Manipal campus recently.

Those present on the occasion included Dr H.S Ballal, Pro-Chancellor, Manipal Academy of Higher education; Prof Vivekanand Jha, Executive Director, George Institute for Global Health, India; Richard Mills, Director, Global Communications, George Institute for Global Health and Dr Ramakrishna Prasad from PCMH, Restore Health.

This one-year certificate course blends management practices with technical inputs from the best minds drawn from all the collaborating institutions. Mentors from Maastricht University, The Netherlands, PCMH Restore Health and People Business are participating in the delivery of the course. It comprises two face-to-face sessions in February and September at the Manipal Academy of Higher Education; each session is for a week. Rest of the course will be delivered using an online platform.

Wide ranging topics covering essential competencies in leadership, leadership models, personal development plans, communication in leadership, health program designs development and stakeholder engagement, peer mentoring, ethics, cost effectiveness etc. are being covered in the first week of face to face sessions currently on at Manipal University.

This course is designed to prepare future leaders who will take an interdisciplinary approach to solve public health issues and take leadership in solving the most pressing  challenges facing our health systems, said Prof Vivekanand Jha, Executive Director, The George Institute.

Dr H.S.Ballal hoped that the course would greatly benefit future leaders in the area of public health.

“A leader leads from the front. They take the right decisions and work for a vision of excellence,” he said.

Dr Sandeep Krishnan, Director HR at People Business, another partner involved in course delivery said, “The delta between good and great in any profession is about having the right leadership effectiveness. In the context of Public Health professionals, the ability to influence a wide range of stakeholders through the leadership skills can be an edge over the rest.”

TGI and MAHE recently signed a MoU to promote public health research in India and to build the capacity of budding researchers to do cutting-edge research in the area. The partnership is focussed on addressing real-world health challenges through development and testing of innovative solutions that bridge the gap between research and policy.