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Empowering Health Leaders: Health Care and Management Alumni on the Role of Scholarships

At Swiss TPH, we aim to develop the next generation of health leaders who can address public health issues around the world. Three of our DAS Health Care and Management alumni shared their experiences and the invaluable lessons they’ve learned during their time at Swiss TPH, illustrating the impact of mutual learning and the crucial role of scholarships. Read more

Yejide Okungbaye, Medical Doctor in Nigeria

"I currently work as a doctor, supporting victims of sexual violence. Every day, I experience how serious it is for people when they are denied access to adequate healthcare. In the Swiss TPH Health Care and Management postgraduate course, I learned how factors such as the social background of a patient or environmental influences affect health. In addition, I appreciated the help that was offered in developing my own professional career.

After my training, I aim to work in politics in order to influence the conditions of healthcare in my home country of Nigeria."

Dinara Beisembekova, Epidemiologist and Public Health Specialist in Kazakhstan

"I started my career as an epidemiologist in Kazakhstan working in hospitals studying and preventing the spread of infectious diseases. Soon I realised how important management skills are in my profession. That’s why I decided to enroll in the Swiss TPH Health Care and Management course, which is aimed at healthcare professionals to strengthen our competence in management. The different backgrounds of the participants make the exchange very unique and enriching.

In the future, I would like to work in an NGO that offers treatment for people with tuberculosis. This is a very common disease in Kazakhstan. Only when patient treatment and management are thought of together, can efficient healthcare be provided."

 

Lujain Alchalabi, PhD Student in Epidemiology at Swiss TPH

"For me, Swiss TPH is much more than the place where I do my education. Here I have the opportunity to apply my knowledge to improve the well-being and health of populations.

I studied dental medicine at the University of Damascus in Syria. I am primarily interested in dental epidemiology but also in refugee health, a neglected area of research. It has two sides to it, one is the health system in the host country and another is the social and cultural barriers from the refugee’s side. This is a situation I can understand very well, being a refugee in Switzerland myself. I am extremely excited to do my PhD in Epidemiology at Swiss TPH!" 

Margaret Gyapong, University of Health and Applied Sciences, Ghana

"As an alumna of Swiss TPH, I have has always remained connected to Swiss TPH and the city of Basel. Today, I am a professor at the University of Health and Applied Sciences in Ghana and a member of the Swiss TPH External Review Board.

Scholarships were an important source of funding during my education and were crucial for me to successfully complete my studies. Today, I want to be an advocate for the next generation of excellent researchers."

Sabin Nsanzimana, Minister of Health of Rwanda

“Swiss TPH is my second home. I recently visited the amazing new building. When I joined Swiss TPH, I was probably only the first or second graduate from Rwanda. Now, I am glad that five other PhD students from Rwanda have since joined Swiss TPH, inspired by the positive experience I had in Basel. I look forward to continuing and exploring further partnerships in the future.“

Ralph Weah Jeroh, Medical Doctor in Liberia

"It’s because of my mother, a traditional healer, that I became a doctor. I knew that I wanted to expand both her and my knowledge and study medicine. I first worked in a hospital in Liberia's capital Monrovia. The days were similar: in the morning and in the evening, the doctors met for a meeting and then spread out on the ward to treat. But then Ebola came, and it changed my life. I realised that it would make more sense to prevent health crises like Ebola than to just work in a hospital. It is better to repair the roof than to mop the floor.

Liberia recently launched its first public health institute in Monrovia, and they asked me to join the team. Since then, I have been eagerly trying to acquire the best knowledge to face this new challenge. That's why I ended up in the Health Care and Management course in Basel. Here I am learning to make the right decisions at the right time. Since Ebola, I know that this is exactly what saves lives."

The full portrait was published in Fieldnotes, the magazine of the R. Geigy Foundation.