About the Center for Global and Community Health (CGCH)
Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU) embraces the vision of interprofessional education and practice and the emerging concept of One Health. It is becoming apparent that our community service and global outreach programs need to become interprofessional toward achieving the goal of improving the health and wellbeing of the local and global community. As a start to promote that goal, the Office of International/Cross-cultural Programs (OICP), which was the historical predecessor of the CGCH, focused on providing guidance for 4th year COMP International Elective Rotations. The CGCH recognized that this effort needed expansion and has transitioned toward a university-wide collective effort-the CGCH. The mission of the CGCH is to promote a multicultural and interprofessional learning environment. The One World-One Health concept fosters patient, community, student and faculty interests in issues that bridge human, animal, and environmental health at the global and local levels. We are to accomplish these goals by empowering communities to address their health and environmental needs to promote interprofessioanl education, training, service and research in both local and global health programs.
Vision
The Center for Global and Community Health (CGCH) at Western University of Health Sciences will be nationally and globally recognized for promoting interprofessional education, clinical practice and research encompassing “One World-One Health”. The center will advance human, animal and environmental health issues at the global, national, and local levels.
Mission
The Center for Global and Community Health (CGCH) promotes a multicultural and interprofessional learning environment. The One World-One Health concept fosters patient, community, student and faculty interests in issues that bridge human, animal and environmental health at the global and local levels. We aim to accomplish these goals by addressing community health needs, education, training and research, and by promoting a culture of service.
Goals
CGCH has identified goals that support the vision and mission of the center as outlined below:
- Create local interprofessional educational and research experiences in health care for faculty and students.
- Develop community empowerment partnerships that will promote equal access to and delivery of adequate healthcare at the global and local levels.
- Develop, implement and maintain exchange programs that support the mission and vision of the CGCH.
- Provide opportunities to study the One World-One Health concept with a particular emphasis on control and prevention of infectious and zoonotic diseases.
- Recognize current trends in public, animal and environmental health issues at the global and local levels, and incorporate these trends in CGCH activities.
CGCH offers international opportunities