Launch of the Maternal Health Academic Consortium
Peter Waiswa, member of the Health Systems and Policy research group and founder of the Makerere Centre of Excellence for maternal, newborn and child health co-organised the launch of the Maternal Health Academic Consortium in Entebbe.
Main topics discussed during the launch were the need and design of mentorships relationship between younger and senior researchers:
- How to find a mentor?
- What are the characteristics of good mentor and mentee mix?
- What are the characteristics of a good mentor?
Also, the needs for formal and informal training needs were discussed. Peter highlighted the successful collaboration between Makerere and Karolinska Institutet.
Members were pledging many in-kind contributions to a growing consortium and developed strategies to seek funding to enable more collaborative mentoring for maternal and perinatal health. Claudia Hanson from Karolinska Institutet and Birgitta Essén from Uppsala University participated in the meeting.
The aim of the Maternal Health Academic Consortium is to:
- Foster collaboration between junior, mid-career and senior maternal health researchers
- Promote the growth of a new generation of maternal health researchers through the identification of mentorship mechanisms and training opportunities
- Identify research gaps and priorities for conducting rigorous and collaborative research and 4) Build strategic partnerships to grow a collegial network on maternal health research.