1. Intro to DoD Global Health Engagement

Welcome to the Global Health Engagement Course!

This 4-credit distance learning course is designed to build awareness and understanding of the many components and issues that add complexity to the conduct of U.S. Department of Defense global health engagement (GHE) activities.

The course is structured as a graduate-level training comprised of 11 core modules. The curriculum explores the strategic, academic, and theoretical bases that underpin global health engagement generally, covers the principles and best practices which guide the DoD GHE enterprise, and provides students with a understanding of the components of planning, executing, and monitoring GHE activities. The Global Health Engagement course is intended to enable student success in participation or planning of future DoD global health engagements.

Course requirements will include:

  • Lecture and Sakai-hosted web content (approx. 1 hour/week)
  • Live weekly discussion via virtual teleconference (VTC) (1 hour/week)
  • Weekly coursework, such as readings, quizzes, discussion questions on the Sakai forum (approx. 4-5 hours/week)
  • A short, 600-word position paper assignment
  • A comprehensive final paper assignment

What is “Global Health Engagement”?

Per the latest guidance, the Department of Defense defines global health engagement (GHE) as:

“Interaction between individuals or elements of DoD and those of a PN’s armed forces or civilian authorities, in coordination with other U.S. Government departments and agencies, to build trust and confidence, share information, coordinate mutual activities, maintain influence, and achieve interoperability in health-related activities that support U.S. national security policy and military strategy. GHE activities establish, reconstitute, maintain, or improve the capabilities or capacities of the PN’s military or civilian health sector, or those of the DoD.”

The Center for Global Health Engagement

This course was developed and is facilitated by a diverse group of subject matter experts at the USU Center for Global Health Engagement (CGHE). CGHE is a USUHS center tasked with supporting the DoD Global Health Engagement enterprise to meet the objectives of the Joint Force, Combatant Commands (CCMDs), Services, the Military Health System (MHS), and national security.

The course is built primarily from the CGHE Training and Professional Development Division’s Fundamentals of Global Health Engagement (FOGHE) course. FOGHE is a three-day in-residence course designed to provide an awareness level understanding of DoD Global Health Engagement and the components of planning, executing, and monitoring such activities.

Required Readings:

The readings for this module will provide an overview of general U.S. Government global health engagement and the Department of Defense GHE enterprise.

  1. The U.S. Government Engagement in Global Health: A Primer. (2019). Kaiser Family Foundation.
  2. Department of Defense Global Health Engagement. Congressional Research Service. (2019).
  3. Quinnan, G.V. (2016). The Future of Department of Defense Global Health Engagement. Joint Forces Quarterly.
  4. Michaud, J. et al. (2019). Militaries and Global Health: peace, conflict, and disaster response. The Lancet.
  5. DODI 2000.30: Global Health Engagement (GHE) Activities. (2017). [This reading may be skimmed, but it will be referenced throughout the course.]
  6. Please review the course syllabus, available on the homepage of this course website.

Throughout this course, facilitators will often use the African Peacekeeping Rapid Response Partnership (APRRP, pronounced A-prep) as a case study on DoD global health engagement. APRRP is a Department of State program with a global health engagement component that is implemented by DoD. The medical-related objective is to build African partner countries’ capacity to rapidly deploy and sustain a UN-standard Level 1 and/or Level 2 Medical Treatment Facility capable of providing support and care utilizing organic assets. This week is a good time to get to know the program:

  1. [Video] New mobile hospital enhances Ugandan military capacity
  2. APRRP One-pager

Discussion Questions:

Please be prepared to discuss the following questions in addition to the required readings. They may be used in the online Sakai forums or the live VTC.

  1. What is your experience with Global Health Engagements?
  2. What is the value of DoD or U.S. Government GHE activities to Partner Nations? To the U.S.?
  3. What makes health a good basis for engaging with Partner Nations?
  4. What are your goals for this course? What do you hope to get out of it?
  5. What unique capabilities might the U.S. military possess for planning or executing GHE activities that other U.S. agencies, NGOs, or intergovernmental organizations (such as the UN) lack?

After You Watch/Read/Engage:

  1. Visit the Sakai discussion forums. Post an introduction, including any Global Health Engagement experience you have had.
  2. Join the live VTC on Thursday.
  3. There is no quiz this week.

Looking Ahead:

  1. Next week’s module covers the Strategic Guidance and Rationale for Global Health Engagement. Why does the DoD engage in health-related international development?
  2. The short paper assignment (600 words) is due March 18 at 2355 hours.
  3. The comprehensive final paper assignment (2000 words) is due May 13 at 2355 hours.