Experiences of working on a Tempus Joint European Project focusing on curriculum development

1. Tempus Masters Programmes in Public health
and Social Services
Training Week 8th – 14th May 2011
Tamara Kudaibergenova, PhD
The Leverhulme Fellow
University of Cumbria
Lancaster, UK

2. Kyrgyz State Medical Academy

3. Opportunities
Tempus project IB_JEP 22183-2001
“Development of Public Health Services in Kyrgyzstan”
2002-2004
Partners:
 Kyrgyz State Medical Academy, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
 St. Martin’s College (present University of Cumbria),
Lancaster, UK
 Pirkanmaa Polytechnic, Tampere, Finland

4. Project Objective:
The development of a modern, effective Institute for Health
Management and Public Health working in partnership with
the Ministry of Health to provide high quality initial and
continuing education to health professionals in Kyrgyzstan
through:
 Updating 2 Undergraduate courses to reflect current needs and
practices
 Development of a Masters Course
 Development of Quality Assurance practices & procedures
 Improving practices of Continuing Professional Development
 Establishment of International Forum of PH professionals

5. Opportunities in Kyrgyzstan
 Kyrgyz State Medical Academy:
Public Health Faculty;
Administration;
International office;
Material and Technical base
 Ministry of Health:
Health Care System;
Medical Education System
 Ministry of Education and Science:
Higher Education System
 Local Tempus Office

6. Opportunities in the UK
 St. Martin’s College:
Public Health;
Nursing;
Occupational Therapy;
International Office;
Material and Technical System
 Public Health System of UK;
 Health Care System of UK;
 Higher Education System

7. Opportunities in Finland
 Pirkanmaa Polytechnic:
International office;
Administration;
Material and Technical base
 Public Health System of Finland;
 Health Care System of Finland;
 Higher Education System:
Public Health professionals education;
Nursing education

8. Opportunities, Challenges,
Compromises
 Intellectual potential of Universities of countries with
different ideological heritage, economical situation,
culture, education and research, health care and
public health system, experiences and approaches.
 This potential is presented by different intellectual
qualities of the team members:
inquisitiveness, criticality, sensitivity to the contradiction,
creativity, ability to generate unusual ideas, discipline,
self-control, dialogue etc.

9. Challenges
 We’ve got “what” to do in the project;
 We’ve got “where” to do it;
 We’ve got “who” would do it;
 And we must have found out “how” to do it.
So the main challenge was:
How to realize the project using all these
opportunities under different conditions and
circumstances effectively?

10. Activities
 4 visits to Kyrgyzstan
 6 visits to Europe - 20 of the KSMA teaching staff (17)
and top managers (3)
 2 weeks of Intensive English course in the UK - 12
KSMA faculties (competition)
 2 months of English course - 12 KSMA faculties
 International conference with proceedings
 Web-site and National Forum of Public Health
Specialists
 Equipment of department’s offices by computers,
printers, etc.

11. Curriculum development
 2 undergraduate programmes:
 Preventive Medicine Programme - 5 year
 25 students of the 1st year, 40 students of the 2nd year
 Nursing Programme - 3.5 year
 20 students of the 1st year
 2 postgraduate programmes:
 Master of Public Health
 Master of Public Health Nursing

12. New courses
 Health concepts
 Health Promotion
 International Health
 Professional Communication
 Media Communication
 Writing Communication
 Critical Analysis
 Leadership
 Conflict Management

13. Conference, October, 9-11 2003
 90 participants:
 PH practitioners of Kyrgyzstan;
 Armenia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan;
 UK, Finland;
 Present problems of PH services and education in PH in
Kyrgyzstan and in the world were discussed;
 Developed programmes and courses were presented;
 Web-site of the project and the International Forum are
presented (http://phksma.host.net.kg);
 Conference resolution was accepted;
 Conference results were published in the proceedings

14. Acquaintance, mastering, updating,
developments and implementations
 Features of European PH systems on examples of
the UK and Finland;
 New trends in international public health systems
development;
 Updating and mastering new teaching techniques:
 Preparation and use of video materials
 Use of case studies

15. Acquaintance, mastering, updating,
developments and implementations
 Updating Quality Assurance system:
 Use feedback from students for the Central methodical
committee for preventive medicine courses;
 Including 2 experts from practical PH services in the
committee;
 Use of peer teaching and peer review of learning materials in
practice of the KSMA
 Continuing Professional Development:
 3 round tables on CPD for PH specialists;
 Discussions aren’t finished yet;
 Standards for PH specialsts is being developed

16. Gained Benefits of the project
 Professional and cultural growth of the KSMA
teaching staff;
 Big prerequisites for development of the
national public health services are made;
 Broadening of international contacts with UK
and Finnish institutions in research and
educational area

17. Publications of project results
 Collection of papers on Public Health Issues and
Proceedings of the International Conference on Public
Health in Kyrgyzstan, Cholpon-Ata, October 9-11 2003.
Bishkek: Kyrgyz State Medical Academy.
 O’Brien, V (2003) The Social Context of Health: Culture
and Health in Public Health Development Kyrgyzstan:
education, science, practice. Proceedings of the
International Conference on Public Health in Kyrgyzstan,
Cholpon-Ata, October 9-11 2003. Bishkek: Kyrgyz State
Medical Academy.
 O'Brien, V. Djusupov, K. Kudaibergonova, T. (2005) Public
health challenges in Kyrgyzstan: developing a new
curriculum. Rural and Remote Health 5 (online) 2005: 461
Available from: http://rrh.deakin.edu.au

18. Publication of project results
O’Brien, V (2005) Public Health in Kyrgyzstan: The Land of the Celestial
Mountains Threevoices Films, Levens
www.threevoices.info/Threevoices/Films.html
O’Brien, V. Djusipov, K. Kudaibergonova, T (2005): Public health
challenges in Kyrgyzstan: developing a new curriculum. Rural and
Remote Health 5 (online)
http://www.rrh.org.au/publishedarticles/article_print_461.pdf
Kyrgyz State Medical Academy:
http://kgma.aknet.kg
University of Cumbria (St. Martin College):
http://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/156/
Pirkanmaa Polytechnic web site:
http://www.piramk.fi/materiaalit/kv/wwwspirit03.pdf

19. Challenges
 These results are only the visible tip of an iceberg and
all the work from which these results became possible
are not visible. ‘Under the water’, the invisible
support for the visible tip of the iceberg, we can find
the people who made the project successful.

20. Project coordinators

21. Training at St. Martin College

22. Trip to Liverpool

23. Jubilee of team members

24. Challenges at start of project
 Lack of resources:
Period of transition after USSR Collapse;
Lack of opportunities for international work;
Poor awareness and understanding of
international work;
Lack of skills for international work at staff
(Computer, Internet, Foreign Languages)
Lack of international contacts with universities;
Lack of initiative for international work;

25. Compromises at start of project
 Administrative support:
Support, encouraging and acknowledgment of
international work by top managers;
International office establishment and hiring staff with
international experience;
 International office activity:
Website with international projects funding information
and successful stories of people;
Organising seminars on international grant initiatives;
Individual consultations on attending international
conferences and grant writing;
Looking for collaborators for international projects

26. Challenges during the project
Project:
 Short-term:
Project was planned for 3 years, but we only got 2
years funding;
Frequent visits of partners (intensive work in trips
and after trip at universities);
 Bureaucracy:
Lots of project forms;
Visa arrangement documents

27. Challenges during the project
Countries:
 Lack of recourses (Collapse of Soviet Union, transition
economics);
 Visa support (UK Embassy in Kazakhstan);
 Culture (Different values);
 System of education (Based mostly on class contact);
 Health care system (Terms: e.g. health inequality);
 Public health care (PH professionals are medical doctors)

28. Challenges during the project
Universities:
 Work overload of staff (System of education based mostly
on class contact);
 Lack of initiative from universities and staff (Ministry of
Health and Ministry of Education subordination)
 Limited opportunity to involve more people from chair;
 Lack of opportunity to involve professionals from practical
part of Public Health System

29. Challenges during the project
People:
 Language barrier (poor English);
 Poor access to specific literature (Limited library funds and internet
access);
 Poor material and technical base of chair;
 Work overload of project team members;
 Lack of awareness and recognition of project by KSMA staff;
 Participation in international project is not acknowledged by
universities as work load;
 Limited opportunity to involve more people from staff of university
and chair;
 Head of Chair subordination of team members;
 Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education subordination (difficult
to involve professionals from practical part of Public Health System)

30. Compromises during the
project
 International Office (logistics, technical support, interpretation);
 Inclusion of “political” members in the project team;
 Inclusion of leaders of KSMA and Public Health system in the project
team and their great support and acknowledgement ;
 Cooperation with Local Tempus office (Project equipment purchasing
documents);
 Tremendous work of team (sacrificing time, weekends, sleep etc.)
 Setting up English Language courses;
 Setting up Computer and Internet user courses;
 Setting up Tempus project web site;
 Our families support;
 Our friends and collegues support;
 Our Lands support (Culture, Traditions of Hospitality, Nature etc)

31. Challenges at the “end” of the
project
The international project can be compared to chain
reaction which starts with the several passionate
people who than involve more and more other people
who contribute the project their forces and emotions,
knowledge and skills, hopes and aspirations for their
countries benefit.
And the main challenge at the end of the project is that
this chain reaction does not stop on you but goes on!

32. Thank you!