Discussion with Professor Marie-Louise Newell – Professor of Global Health (Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Social and Human Sciences)
What is the GHRI aiming to achieve?
We are planning to build an interdisciplinary research platform where we aim to bring the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Social and Human Sciences under one roof to promote and enhance health, human development and quality of life across populations, globally. We are hoping to cover transnational issues in population health and wellbeing and explore factors associated with health in the broadest sense in a wide socio-behavioural, spatial, political, cultural, environmental, health and technological context.
What is your vison for the Institute?
The GHRI aims to become an internationally recognised research centre at the University directly or indirectly contributing to global health or related health technology/engineering research. Once we are established as a body at the University, at some point we may even will be able to take it outside the University environment and be able to build on the University’s reputation for being research intensive. We would aim to develop cost-effective and sustainable solutions and best practice interventions to reduce the global burden of both communicable and non-communicable diseases.
What is the framework and how you do plan to position the institute uniquely?
There are already various virtual networks of the University Strategic Research Groups (USRGs) under disciplines like Ageing and Lifelong Health, Bioinformatics; physical and chemical science, nanotechnology and even Engineering which we aim to bring together to form a cross disciplinary framework working together as a single entity. The Global Health research programme would initially focus on population-based and translational research on ‘Health across Generations’, which would build synergy and maximise existing expertise at the University, capitalising on the established research partnerships with institutions around the world and engaging new University research expertise wherever appropriate.
How do you plan to get the funding and infrastructure support?
The Deans of Medicine and Social and Human Sciences would develop an application for the University to fund the project by the end of March 2015. We would not need much infrastructure support in terms of laboratories as the Institute would be more data centric for research analysis
How did you get involved in the project?
I have a background of driving a similar initiative at the University College London and I also spent over 8 years in South Africa working on issues related to global health. That made me the obvious choice here at the University to lead this initiative.
Any other information you would want the share at this point?
The Faculty of Social and Human Sciences is planning to start a Master’s in Global Health’ in the next academic year. This would align with our vision and purpose of building the GHRI. You can find more information on the University website.