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Global Health Matters

July - August, 2007  |  Volume 6, Issue 4

NIH/Fogarty Scholars Urged to Establish Relationships to Advance Global Health

U.S. Assistant Secretary of Health John Agwunobi encourages the 2007 Fogarty International Clinical Research Scholars
to remain humble as they form critical relationships with foreign scientists, who share the common goal of improving global health.

Relationships provide the single biggest contribution to the improvement of global health, according to U.S. Assistant Secretary of Health John Agwunobi. In remarks to the 2007 NIH/Fogarty International Clinical Research Scholars at the conclusion of their orientation, he urged them to remain humble in their dealings with their foreign peers.

"Your ability to sit with the less well-endowed as equals and to have honest conversations with them--that's what's going to change world health," he added. "Never be arrogant that it's about what we can do for them. It's about what we can do together."

Agwunobi's remarks concluded three weeks of intensive global health instruction on the NIH campus, designed to prepare the 49 awardees to assume their overseas research training posts.

Fogarty Director Dr. Roger Glass is a firm believer that an early experience in global health can inspire a lifetime of accomplishments. "It hits right on that element of idealism that you can actually identify a problem that is underserved, and use your medical training to change the world," he said.

In its fourth year, the scholars training program pairs U.S. graduate students with low- and middle-income country students or recent graduates in the health sciences. The paired awardees receive a one-year mentored clinical research training experience at a Fogarty collaborator site, working on NIH-funded clinical research.

"The matching of Americans with host nation scholars is a pillar of this program," according to Fogarty Program Officer Dr. Aron Primack, who oversees the scholars training initiative. "We're trying to develop a cadre of people who really understand global health from an overarching perspective."

Many of the previously selected scholars have already published work related to their experience abroad in peer-reviewed journals, and have presented competitive papers at international meetings. The program is open to students in medicine, public health, nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, veterinary medicine and other doctoral-level programs in the health sciences from which someone might aspire to a career in global health research.

The scholars program is funded by eight NIH components including Fogarty; the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; the National Institute on Drug Abuse; the National Cancer Institute; the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities; the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research; the National Institute of Nursing Research; and the National Institute of Child Health and Development. In addition, support for recruitment and review is provided by the Association of American Medical Colleges and the Association of Schools of Public Health.

Please click on the link to see the list of the 2007 NIH/Fogarty International Clinical Research Sites.