Bringing Contextual Realities in Public Health Education
To identify the right problems with design solutions that work on the ground
Public Health is influenced by germs and medicines; but also by social, economic, cultural, political and environmental determinants. Public Health is practiced through service delivery, programme management and policy making; but also through research and advocacy. Public Health is practiced in healthcare facilities, directorates and ministries; and also in courtrooms, media and on the streets. Public Health is practiced by experts of different disciplines, including but not limited to medicine; but also by the so-called lay people, in every home and community.
These determinants, methods, spaces and actors may appear to be distinct, but they are deeply interconnected. They together complete the picture of Public Health — a picture that changes across contexts and over time. It is crucial to be aware of and to engage with these complex and layered realities for an effective Public Health practice.
More than a hundred institutes in India now offer Public Health education programmes. While this expansion reflects a growing need, it also raises questions about how well the students are getting prepared for real-world practice. Without exposure to the layered realities, the graduates may struggle to identify the right problems or design solutions that work on the ground. This makes it important for Public Health education to actively engage with the context and its complexity.
Azim Premji University is hosting an online panel discussion with faculty from three diverse Public Health institutions to reflect on the importance of bringing contextual realities into Public Health education, the ways in which it can be done and the challenges one may face while doing so.
This session is open to faculty members, practitioners, and anyone interested in Public Health education. It may also be useful for students exploring careers or further study in Public Health and allied fields, and professionals working in health, development, policy, or community-based organisations.
Dr Ritupriya Mehrotra
Dr Ritu Priya, recently superannuated Professor at the Centre of Social Medicine & Community Health, Jawaharlal Nehru University, is a medical graduate with a doctorate in Community Health. She was Advisor of Public Health Planning with the National Health Systems Resource Centre, and member of Task Forces of the Planning Commission, the Department/Ministry of AYUSH, and the National AIDS Control Organisation. She was founder Coordinator of the Trans-disciplinary Research Cluster on Plural Health Care at JNU and Convenor of the Trans-disciplinary Research Cluster on Sustainability Studies.
Her work links epidemiology, popular culture studies and health systems research for health planning and policy formulation, specifically focusing on health of marginalised groups, problems of nutrition and communicable diseases, urban health, health systems development, and the politics of health knowledge for a critical holism in Public Health. A G20 Working Paper of which she was lead author titled Universal Health Coverage or Universalising the Health Care Crisis…? and articles in leading journals and books reflect evolving ideas about democratic approaches for sustainable and people empowering health systems.
Prof Rakhal Gaitonde
Dr Rakhal Gaitonde is a Professor of Public Health at the Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies of the Sree Chitra Tirunal Insititute of Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Thiruvananthapuram. He completed his MBBS from Government Kilpauk Medical College and MD Community Medicine from Christian Medical College (CMC) Vellore. He subsequently worked with NGOs implementing projects on community-based accountability in Tamil Nadu under the National Rural Health Mission.
He worked in the grassroots NGO sector for nearly a decade before completing his PhD in Public Health from Umea University in Sweden. He teaches and researches the Social Determinants of Health, and Health Policy and Systems Research. He guides research by MPH and PhD students on various aspects of discrimination and inequity with respect to health.
He has more than a decade’s involvement in Environment and Occupational Health supporting a number of pollution impacted communities through research and advocacy. He recently contributed to the preparation of reports for the Kerala and Tamil Nadu State Planning Commissions as they evolved their vision for health. He was a member of the National ASHA Mentoring group of the Government of India for a decade. He is a member of Technical Advisory Group to the WHO on New TB Vaccines.
Prof M Sivakami
M Sivakami is a Professor at the School of Health Systems Studies, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, India, and serves on the World Health Organisation’s Global Technical Advisory Group on Health, Migration and Displacement. With over 25 years of experience, her work sits at the intersection of gender, health, and demography.
Her research has been published in some of the most respected journals in the field of public health, including The Lancet, Nature, BMJ Open, PLOS One, and many others. She is the co-editor of the recent Handbook on Sex, Gender, and Health: Perspectives from South Asia, a significant contribution to the conversations on gender equity and health in the region.
Professor Sivakami believes that gender is not just an academic concept, but a powerful lens for understanding and transforming inequalities in health and well-being in India. What she values most is her interaction with students, including teaching, mentoring, and guiding future public health professionals who will shape tomorrow’s health systems.
Moderator
The session will be moderated by Mohit P Gandhi, faculty member, Azim Premji University.