Global health (GH) is a term that describes health and healthcare that transcend national borders; it investigates health inequities from a multidisciplinary lens. Emphasis is placed on population health, instead of the health of individuals. One of the main differences between GH and international health is that GH prioritizes partnerships and resource sharing, instead of unilateral relationships and it is focused on advocacy. Global health is evident all over Canada, and in developing nations. The Institute of Medicine defines GH as “health problems, issues, and concerns that transcend national boundaries, may be influenced by circumstances or experiences in other countries, and are best addressed by cooperative actions and solutions”. Global health strives towards health equity regardless of race, social class, or culture.

History of the Global Health AEP:

Prior to 2008: 

The Association of Faculties of Medicine in Canada formed a Resource Group on Global Health, and published a number of reports on the importance of including global health in the UGME curriculum. At Queen’s, a global health course did not exist in the UGME curriculum.
Queen’s medical students made 5 requests to increase their education in global health:

A core global health curriculum
Support for selecting and preparing safe oversee electives
A certificate focused on global health
An office of global health, and
A Queen’s Centre for Excellence in Global Health abroad

With the support of the Faculty of Health Sciences Dean, several faculty members in the School of Medicine set out to fulfil the students’ requests.

 
2008: 

An Office of Global Health was launched in the School of Medicine.

 
2009 to 2015: 

The Global and Population Health course was added to the UGME core curriculum.
A pre-departure training program was created for Queen’s medical students, who chose to do electives or observerships abroad in low-resource settings.

A placement map was created to support students in finding safe and educational electives/observerships.
The Office of Global Health contributed to the development and publication of Global Health Core Competencies in Undergraduate Medical Education in conjunction with the Association of Faculties of Medicine in Canada Resource Group in Global Health and the Canadian Federation of Medical Students Global Health Program. 
A certificate in global health was under development.

 
2015 to 2017: 

The pilot of the non-credit Certificate in Global Health was launched for Queen’s medical students to gain additional training and education in global health.

 
2018 to Present: 

UGME launched their Academic Enrichment Programs.
The Certificate of Global Health was updated based on recommendations from students that participated in the pilot version, and was re-launched as a Global Health AEP.