Global awareness in focus when University Management visited GPH
On Wednesday, March 6, the university management, President Annika Östman Wernerson, Vice President Martin Bergö and University Director Veronika Sundström visited the Department of Global Public Health, to gain a better insight into the department's activities. Key issues discussed included global awareness, the department's strengths and how dialogue can strengthen cooperation. In addition to the university management, the department's management team and Dean Carl Johan Sundberg participated.
The meeting was opened by Head of Department Marie Hasselberg, with an overall presentation of the department and the programs, where she highlighted the importance of both the global cooperation with almost 50 countries, the regional, and local collaboration both within the department and KI.
"I emphasized the global awareness that exists at GPH, as well as our systems perspective, collaboration from Region to WHO, the equality perspective and the work related to the global sustainable goals. Not least, the strength we have in influencing and contributing to better health for all," says Marie.
Focus on internal dialogue
The KI President Annika Östman Wernerson, continued the conversation with the importance of a dialog-based approach. Both between the university management and the departments, but also internally within the department and how the dean's new role will be an important link in this work.
"KI has previously focused a lot on the external work, now it is time to look at the internal. We need to work systematically and have a process to move forward. We need to be close to the organization and see that we are all part of it. The management cannot visit the departments every semester, so the role of the deans is very important. And we can achieve a more continuous dialog from both sides through them," says Annika.
Student presentation and examples of collaboration from regional to global level
During the second part of the meeting, the management was activated in a triage exercise to get an example of the education and research at the department. The exercise is a kind of role play where the participants are assigned specific roles to be trained together to handle a fake mass casualty scenario, where both quick and life-changing decisions need to be made, often with insufficient access to information and without having control over the entire situation. The exercise was led by employees from the research group Global disaster medicine.
A group of master's students presented their award-winning poster on global pandemic preparedness.
Christina Dalman, professor, senior physician and research group leader for EPiCSS, presented the research project PEDALS, Prevalence of Emotional Distress in AdoLescence and need of Support. It is a study to map the prevalence of mental health problems among young people in Sweden, with the aim of finding new ideas for support and care.
Professor and pediatrician Tobias Alfvén, together with postdoc and pediatrician Susanna Myrnerts Höök, ended the afternoon talking about their research to improve the care of newborn children with breathing difficulties in low and high-income countries Once again, the management was involved in an appreciated moment where they got to try using a Larynx mask on a doll.