Posted on in ICTs, In the News

Paid fellowship in the US for international mobile health professionals

Deadline: Applications accepted year-round, but apply by February 12 for a June 2012 Fellowship

Atlas Corps is an international exchange program for the world’s best nonprofit leaders. The Atlas Corps Fellowship is a 12-18 month, direct-service fellowship. In addition to serving at an organization related to their experience, Fellows will learn leadership skills and best practices while networking with skilled nonprofit professionals from around the world.

Recruiting international nonprofit professionals with eHealth or mobile health experience, especially those from Ghana, Rwanda, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. This Fellow will serve at a public health organization for 12 to 18 months beginning in June 2012.

Eligibility: Applicants must be under the age of 35, have at least a Bachelor’s degree, be proficient in English, have two or more years of experience in the nonprofit/NGO/social sector, and be committed to returning to their home country after the 12-18 month Fellowship.

Apply: For more details about eligibility requirements and the application process, please visit: http://www.atlascorps.org/apply.php.

Please note that applications are accepted year-round, and the deadline has been extended to February 12 for mobile health professionals to be considered for the June 2012 class.

Posted on in ICTs, New Media

Are you a Rising Star in Global Health?

Grand Challenges Canada wants to tap into the creativity, knowledge and skills of emerging innovators from low- and lower-middle income countries to solve some of the most persistent health challenges in the developing world through scientific/technological, business, and social innovation. They are looking for innovative ideas to address complex real-world challenges that involve a scientific or technological solution (new or existing) alone or in combination with social and/or business innovations.

Do you have an idea? Applications are due March 23rd. For more information, go to the Rising Stars in Global Health website at: http://www.grandchallenges.ca/grand-challenges/gc1-stars/rising-stars-in-global-health-program-information/

Posted on in In the News, Media Advocacy

Worsening Tobacco Control situation in Jamaica – a concern for the Caribbean‏

The following message came from Debbie Chen and the Heart Foundation of Jamaica. Just as tobacco companies are using every marketing and communication method to increase the uptake of cigarettes and other tobacco produces, we in the public health community have to find innovate ways to counteract their practices.

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Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse with the continuing delay of the tobacco legislation here in Jamaica, and the subsequent arrival of a US based “Roll Your Own” (RYO) tobacco company setting up business here with plans to expand in the Caribbean; we now have yet another entrant to the tobacco market to contend with.

This company imports cigarettes from Uruguay called “bama” and states that they are 25 % cheaper than one of their competitor’s brands. They state in the attached news article:

“We will be utilising unique marketing to get bama’s cigarettes out there in the public consciousness. We realise that we are up against entrenched brands but we have a very good product. We will be embarking on a community’s tour which begins on January 20 and goes on until February 29. We will first begin in communities in the corporate areas and will undertake talent shows seeking out the best in these communities. We will be brining the best entertainers on the road with us and will be doing 12 shows in six weeks to heighten brand awareness”

The company have also placed advertisements in the print media (see attached) – something which, by gentleman’s agreement with the leading tobacco company here (Carerras) had not occurred for several years until recently. To make it worse they plan to extend their reach in the Caribbean. They state that they: “plan to expand to St. Lucia through an in bond vehicle”. You may recall the RYO tobacco company also has plans to expand throughout the Caribbean and are actively seeking persons interested in owning a franchise.

The Jamaica Coalition for Tobacco Control (JCTC) has written to the editor of the several local newspapers about this issue (see attached) and the Ministry of Health are aware of the situation. The only way to stop this scourge from spreading in our respective countries is for the tobacco control legislation to be passed based on the Framework Convention for Tobacco Control (FCTC). And once the legislation has been passed (as it has been in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago), there has to be monitoring. Non communicable disease is the leading cause of death in our region, and tobacco smoking is a common risk factor for all these illnesses; and it is the most preventable. I would encourage you all at your country level to get involved in tobacco control efforts and speak out against this type of situation which, apart from being a health issue, is also a threat to social and national development.

We will in the very near future be restarting our regional tobacco control network. Some of you will recall that through the InterAmerican Heart Foundation we had a Caribbean Tobacco Control group, which at the time was focused on getting countries to ratify the FCTC. The IAHF Caribbean Office (based here at The Heart Foundation of Jamaica) will restart this “virtual group” in collaboration with the Healthy Caribbean Coalition (based in Barbados). We will establish a Facebook page and an email group. We would then use that medium to keep each other informed about tobacco control issues in our countries. As we see from this situation, what happens in one Caribbean island eventually spreads throughout the region.

Let us work together to fight this deadly industry – remember, it is the only legally available product that when used exactly as the manufacturer intends, kills people. Yes, the task may seem unsurmountable – but I believe the situation would be far worse if we did nothing.

Posted on in ICTs, New Media

Join Andre Robb and CrowdOutAIDS

 A few days ago, we posted about Andre Robb’s participation in drafting UNAIDS secretariat strategy. Soroya Julian followed up with him to find out how people across the region can participate in in the process.Through crowdsourcing–a process that enables mass collaboration–the secretariat hopes to engage more young people and others historically left out of strategy development.

So, how does Andre plan to make sure the Caribbean and its specific needs are well represented in the strategy? Here’s what he had to say:

“As far as I understand the CrowdOutAIDS process, the drafting committee is really an aggregator and refiner of the sentiments voiced throughout the process. So at this point, my role may not necessarily be to represent specific needs, as much as it is for me to stay true to the realities experienced by Caribbean young people. I will ensure that in situations where a regional perspective is needed, that I reflect views and insights that have been shared by participants, my own experience and the experiences of those I have access to during the process. The document is being publicly drafted and there is a solutions app on the site, so Caribbean youth and youth all over  the world, continue to have an opportunity to guarantee good representation – isn’t that awesome?!”

Want to get involved? Want to know more about the solutions app that Andre mentioned? Go to the website at CrowdOutAIDS.org of visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/CrowdOutAIDS-North-America-Western-Central-Europe/207451279324304.

 

Posted on in ICTs, New Media

Tweet Tweet for gaining health knowledge via Twitter

While I’m still skeptical that large numbers of Caribbean people are using the microblogging service, those who do should take advantage of the volume of knowledge available and join the the many online conversations going on about health.

https://twitter.com/#!/SoroyaJulian/status/162670107234009088

For the third week now, PAHO’s eHealth (#esac; 7PM EST) team has been hosting weekly “What is Public eHealth?” tweet chats about eHealth, mHealth and various new media approaches to reducing health inequalities across Latin America and the Caribbean.

And coming up on Monday, January 30, at 2PM EST, the director of the  U.S.’s Center’s for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, (@DrFriedenCDC) will host a twitter chat abut cervical cancer. This is timely and relevant because cervical cancer is the 3rd most common cause of cancer in women in the world. research is ongoing to assess the prevalence of cervical cancer in our region. All women are at risk for cervical cancer. And, it is preventable.

So, will you be chatting it up on Twitter?