One Health, one summer school, one once in a lifetime experience
It is not just our established researchers who are able to benefit from unique experiences to take their interests abroad. Last summer four of our students applied for the ‘One Health Medical School programme', taking them to Kampala in Uganda.
The aim of the programme was to expose students to a range of One Health aspects in a tropical and developing country setting. For the students, the opportunity enabled them to gain first hand exposure in circumstances that they might not have otherwise been able to such as a range of aspects including livestock health, production and management, veterinary public health, food safety and security, veterinary and human diagnostic laboratories, human public health systems and environmental conservation.
Our four students, Cecilia Tat, Liz Wood, Brittany Potts and Viliam Hofercia, all took up this opportunity and wholeheartedly agreed that it was a wonderful experience that has motivated them to think about their future careers and importantly the applications and importance of the One Health ethos. They said:
“I enjoyed all aspects of the programme however the standout experience was speaking to local communities. In particular, meeting the local community in Kibaale, Uganda was a unique opportunity to hear about the various issues and areas of conflict experienced living in close proximity to the national park. The fishing village in Queen Elizabeth National Park highlighted the importance of the lakes not only for fishing, but as a water source for both cattle and humans. The combination of all these uses highlighted the potential risks to humans, animals and the environment arising. Seeing the village also highlighted the relevance of the human, animal and wild animal interface.” - Elizabeth Wood.
“Having the experience of partaking in the One Health summer study abroad in Uganda, the thing I liked the most about it was the abundant amount of first-hand exposure to various scenarios and communities where One Health is either already being in use or it is the new approach which can be utilised in the future.” – Viliam Hoferica.
“Touring around different animal management systems such as the fish farm in Entebbe stood out to me, partly because it was my first time at a commercial fish farm, but I could see how a commercial one differs to a non-commercial farm that I had seen back in the UK.” – Cecilia Tat.
Find out more about the One Health summer programme.