Diploma in Reproductive Health in Developing Countries (DRH)

This programme has Royal College of Midwives (RCM) professional accreditation for 3 years (until 2 November 2017)

This is a 12 week programme run each year between January and end of March and organised by the Maternal & Newborn Health Unit at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) in partnership with the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG).

SCHOLARSHIPS - Multiple scholarships are available for this programme, with preference being given to students from low resource settings - details below:

• Scholarship Forms given to all suitable applicants once we have received your application.
• To be considered, we strongly advise you to return scholarship forms by 1 September 2013.
• LSTM retain the right to withdraw a scholarship offer and assign it to another student (ie. Visa Refusal)
• LSTM may consider late scholarship applications, subject to remaining funding.

COURSE OBJECTIVES AND LEARNING OUTCOMES The Reproductive Health in Developing Countries course (DRH) is designed to help doctors, midwives and other health professionals working in the area of Sexual and Reproductive Health (or planning to do so), acquire knowledge and skills which will enable them to:

• Develop an awareness of the need to reduce reproductive mortality and morbidity through a multi dimensional and team approach
• Increase their capabilities to plan, implement and evaluate relevant programmes and interventions in reproductive health
• Review a range of possible strategies that can be used to improve Sexual and Reproductive Health in resource poor countries and evaluation of these
• Understand and explain basic epidemiology, quantitative and qualitative research methods and apply the knowledge to critically analyse research papers and reports

After I finished my programme of Reproductive Health I went back to my country and I am really proud of LSTM because now I have started to benefit from the knowledge & skills which I acquired. I am now conducting different part-time jobs (consultancy) in maternal death audits; HPV vaccination and Family Planning. Yves Lucien Hakorimana (DRH 2011)

Throughout the programme the aim will be for the participants to gain in-depth knowledge and understanding and sufficient confidence in new skills and ideas to be able to begin to develop and apply them in their own working environment and with colleagues in a developing country situation.  The course will be run with an emphasis on discussion groups and full participation of students and with a less emphasis on didactic lecturing.  It is therefore important for participants to be actively involved to benefit fully from the course.

Learning outcomes By the end of the course students will be able to:

• Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of current global strategies to improve Sexual & Reproductive Health (SRH), including Maternal & Neonatal Health (MNH).
• Understand and articulate strategies for the prevention and control of STIs and challenges in implementation in low-income countries.
• Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the natural history and epidemiology of HIV infection and strategies to control HIV/AIDS, including principles of ARV treatment and approaches to counselling and testing for HIV.
• Provide evidence-based SRH and MNH services and monitor & evaluate such services.
• Provide evidence-based obstetric care during pregnancy, child birth and in the postnatal period, including treatment of obstetric complications.
• Initiate quality improvement activities for MNH care services.
• Organise and provide FP services and plan for interventions to increase coverage and utilisation of such services.
• Provide treatment of STIs using the syndromic management approach.
• Apply the concepts of gender and human rights to the provision of equitable SRH and MNH services.
• Appreciate, articulate and address the SRH needs of adolescents and organise and provide youth-friendly SRH services.
• Articulate the different forms of and strategies to control sexual & gender-based violence, including Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and organise and provide health care to victims of sexual & gender-based violence.
• Conduct a computer-based literature search, critically review the literature, write a literature review and give an oral presentation, using power-point.

Scholarships are available for this programme.

TEACHING STAFF The teaching will be undertaken by staff from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, from the Division of Perinatal and Reproductive Medicine in the School of Reproductive and Developmental Medicine of the University of Liverpool, fellows of the RCOG, lecturers from WHO as well as other external lecturers with specific expertise relevant to particular aspects of the course.  Teaching staff with a responsibility for a particular aspect of the course will be involved in assessing that section of the course.

PROGRAMME OUTLINE

Syllabus Key themes of the course include: concepts of SRH and MNH, safe motherhood and strategies to improve MNH and reduce maternal, perinatal and neonatal mortality, including in particular key strategies as Skilled Attendance at Birth and Emergency Obstetric Care, The course also covers provision of MNH and RH services, community aspects of MNH, management of obstetric complications, obstetric fistula, female genital mutilation, neonatal health & health care, family planning programmes and contraception, prevention and management of STIs and HIV, adolescent SRH, gender and health, human rights in relation to SRH, prevention & management of cervical cancer, human sexuality and principles of sex and relationship education, sexual & gender-based violence, basic epidemiology & statistics, qualitative research methods, programme planning & management, quality improvement methods, as well as skills development in doing a computerised literature search, how to read and appraise a scientific paper, how to prepare and give a (power point) presentation, and how to write a dissertation.

Individual project work and dissertation During the course students will explore a topic of their choice more in depth by conducting a critical literature review and writing a dissertation of not more than 3000 words.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS Qualified health care providers, such as nurses, midwives, clinical officers, doctors, obstetricians, who are working in low and middle income countries or who are planning to do so. Applications from staff in Ministries of Health, freelance consultants and health advisors working in the field of SRH are also invited. Applicants should have adequate proficiency in English IELTS 6.5 / TOEFL paper based 570, or TOEFL iBT 88.

Other expenses (accommodation, subsistence, travel from airport, stationery, books) are estimated at £ 1,800.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Applications for the course have to be sent to [email protected].

Professional Courses Unit

Phone +44 (0)151 705 3172 / 3753 / 3754    E-mail: [email protected]

Course director: Dr. Mselenge Mdegela 

Phone: +44 (0)151 705 3705 E-mail: [email protected]  

Contact address:

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool L3 5QA, United Kingdom

Phone: +44 (0)151 705 3100 Fax:      +44 (0)151 705 3370