This week we had our first taste of classes at Manipal. I am taking five classes: maternal and child health, epidemiology in developing countries, global health problems, contemporary Indian culture, and Ayurveda (traditional Indian medicine), and thinking about auditing a sixth in surveillance of infectious diseases. Because we had Monday off for Republic day, I haven’t been to all my classes yet, but the ones I have been to were great! Our classes so far are just with our group. While I would have liked them to be with other Indian students I think this also gives us a unique opportunity to engage with the material and with the professors who have so much experience in their fields. We were told that Indian classrooms were not particularly participatory, they would be composed primarily of PowerPoint presentations and we should expect little to no discussion and opportunities to voice our own thoughts. So far though, that has seemed completely contrary to our experience. Our professors seem eager to hear our thoughts, answer our questions, and engage us more in depth, though there are still plenty of lectures.
We also have visits to various public health sectors throughout the area every Friday with our faculty, where we will have the ultimate opportunity to engage with the material very practically. This week is our first visit and we will be visiting a primary health center. I’m particularly excited for our later visits to a DOTS (treatment for TB) center in Udapi, a surveillance of communicable disease center, integrated child development services center, and a visit to a cashew factory to learn about occupational hazards associated with the processing of the cashews. I imagine I’ll have many more updates about classes as they earnestly get underway, so stay tuned!
We also have visits to various public health sectors throughout the area every Friday with our faculty, where we will have the ultimate opportunity to engage with the material very practically. This week is our first visit and we will be visiting a primary health center. I’m particularly excited for our later visits to a DOTS (treatment for TB) center in Udapi, a surveillance of communicable disease center, integrated child development services center, and a visit to a cashew factory to learn about occupational hazards associated with the processing of the cashews. I imagine I’ll have many more updates about classes as they earnestly get underway, so stay tuned!