Medical schools cluster
Global Seminar for Health and Environment
Why focus on global health?
The world is increasingly global in nature. A global approach is required to address cultural sensitivity and equip medical students with the skills to respond to major challenges at home and abroad. The mission of the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine is to prepare globally-minded, community focused physicians and to improve the health of those most in need. The greater the number of students training in critical thinking and dialogue, the greater the capacity to impact human health.
The benefits of a global network for health
The Global Seminar for Health and Environment prepares physicians to articulate political agendas and understand complex, real-life situations. It teaches critical and creative thinking about key health and environmental issues and approaches, in the belief that shared understandings offer the best hope for a healthier and more sustainable world. This global network for health fosters international distance learning partnerships and a forum for future development among medical schools, physicians associations, governments, hospitals, donor agencies, and other partners.
The Global Seminar for Environment and Health
Partners in the Global Seminar for Environment and Health include the Universdiad Nacional Autonoma de Honduras in Tegucigalpa, Honduras; the Universidad Evangelica de El Salvador in San Salvador, El Salvador; the Instituto Tecnologico de Santo Domingo in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; and the Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Map showing partners in the Global Seminar for Environment and Health
A Global Medical Program
The Global Seminar for Environment and Health is conducted as part of the International Health and Outreach program at the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine.
The International Health and Outreach program includes three full-time international sites for student rotation, collaborative education and improved diagnostics, and episodic medical outreach trips on acute care and public health to ensure the long-term sustainability of in-country clinics. There are seamless hands-on and virtual education and diagnostic components with international sites in El Salvador, Dominican Republic, and Honduras.
One-Week Medical Mission Trips
VCOM offers multiple medical outreach trips to each site during student breaks. Trip participants include 20-25 students and 3-5 VCOM faculty members. Students and faculty engage in health promotion and prevention activities through field clinics, surveys, vaccination campaigns, and basic community and public health outreach activities, and deliver basic medical care. Students who participate in medical outreach trips reflect on their experiences, specific cases, and the impact on their medical education through writing case studies published in VCOM's Medical Mission Journal.
One-Month International Student Rotations
Each year, VCOM offers approximately 90 third- and fourth-year medical students the opportunity to complete one- or two-month international rotations in one of VCOM's three international partner sites. During their in-country experience, medical students observe and treat diseases not typical in the U.S., while also witnessing how poverty and lack of access to appropriate medical care can affect patients and communities. Students work closely with VCOM's in-country doctors to learn about the country health system and practices.
Knowledge to Practice Through a Continuum
The International program follows a continuum logic model of introduction to immersion. First, students elect one-week mission trips in first and second year. Second, based on these short-term experiences, students elect one or more month-long international rotations where they also support mission trips. Third and concurrently, students complete medical curriculum, gain practical clinical experience, rotate in hospitals, study tropical diseases, and gain understanding of culture. The Global Seminar for Health and Environment complements this continuum and provides students the opportunity to enhance their communication skills and become globally-minded physicians.
