Center for Global Health Equity at the University of Michigan

The Center for Global Health Equity at the University of Michigan is committed to advancing interdisciplinary engagement across the university and with global partners to equitably prevent disease and improve health in low- and middle-income countries. 

The center applies a unique interdisciplinary approach, fostering collaboration across university departments and forming meaningful partnerships in low- and middle-income countries. By prioritizing research and interventions that address the root causes of health inequities, the center employs community-centered approaches to ensure equitable healthcare access. In addition, the center actively supports the development of U-M faculty and graduate students, driving meaningful global change and building capacity for long-term health improvements. 

One of the center’s primary initiatives, the Impact Scholars program, prepares exceptional early-career investigators and practitioners for work in global health research and program development. The program appoints a diverse set of participants from around the world for one to two years to work closely with esteemed U-M faculty mentors on collaborative projects spanning multiple priority themes identified by the center. Through training and mentorship, the initiative supports scholars in generating measurable impacts in low-resource settings. After completing the program, Impact Scholars emerge as effective, influential leaders capable of driving significant advancements in global health.

The center collaborates with Dr. Ella August to support the Impact Scholars program and other academic initiatives.

Dr. August supports the Impact Scholars in honing their scientific communication skills and boosting productivity, offering twice-monthly curriculum sessions and personalized one-on-one mentoring. Scholars also receive training on providing high quality peer review and are invited to join the PREPSS peer reviewer team. In addition, collaboration between the center and Dr. August has led to novel scholarly initiatives. Of particular note is the paper, “What is Global Health Equity? A Proposed Definition,” which marked a pioneering effort from the center to advance the cause of global health equity within academia. 

Center for the Assessment of Tobacco Regulations (CAsToR)

Center for International Reproductive Health Training at the University of Michigan

Access to quality reproductive health care empowers girls and women to shape their lives and determine their futures. Quality family planning (FP) and safe abortion services are essential for achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment in low and middle-income countries. To serve the needs of women and girls, the CIRHT-UM was founded in 2014 to partner with educational institutions in developing countries to strengthen human resources for effective FP and comprehensive abortion care (CAC). 

CIRHT-UM developed a framework for faculty development in three program areas: education, service provision, and research. This program strengthens the capacity of all OBGYN and midwife/nursing faculty in the partner schools in clinical competencies in FP/CAC, as well as in teaching and research skills, while integrating a pre-service FP/CAC competency-based training curriculum. The institutional capacity of partner schools to deliver high quality pre-service FP/CAC training is improved with simulation labs, reproductive health clinics and learning resources. The research portion of the program aims to strengthen and sustain a culture of research in FP/CAC and strengthen faculty research capacity by optimizing research skills through a systematic, longitudinal approach. CIRHT-UM first integrated FP/CAC into medical and midwifery curricula at nine partner schools across Ethiopia to ensure graduates acquired necessary skills before beginning clinical service. Research trainings were open to all faculty, and researchers were required to form interdisciplinary teams. The project aimed to increase the number of independent faculty investigators in the partner schools, ultimately leading to better evidence-based medical practice. Since the program’s inception, over 100 abstracts have been submitted to major conferences, with 28 peer-reviewed publications and 30 manuscripts in preparation. The project has transitioned to the Federal Ministry of Health, solidifying the country’s ownership of it, and validating the government’s commitment to its sustainability. 

CIRHT-UM has since partnered with the University of Rwanda and assisted with competency-based FP/CAC curriculum, faculty development and service provision. CIRHT-UM is now focused on research capacity strengthening in Rwanda and expansion to other African countries (such as Uganda, Cameroon, and Benin). One salient feature consistently highlighted by faculty at partner institutions is CIRHT UM’s unique approach, which has variously been described as nonprescriptive, cost effective and driven by the needs of partner schools in an authentic partnership model.