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University hosts African medics
Doctors and students from four continents have visited the University to learn about the Scottish health system.
The students, who mostly hail from Africa and are studying for degrees at the Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, learned how the National Health Service (NHS) operates in Scotland.
During the week-long visit, hosted by the University and NHS Lothian, the students conducted interviews with a variety of health-service professionals, including clinicians, managers, and policymakers.
International collaboration
The study visit is part of a 30-year collaboration between the University’s Centre for International Public Health Policy, the Lothian Health Board and the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp.
More than half of the students who took part are medical doctors, while the rest are social scientists and economists. They hail from 17 different countries across four continents.
Important lessons
According to the Institute of Tropical Medicine’s Dr Tom Hoeree, Scotland’s integrated, efficient healthcare system lessens the influence of the market on healthcare provision.
As a result, NHS Scotland provides important lessons to other countries, he said.
This article was published on Aug 9, 2010