Global health

We are committed to equipping our residents to care for all pediatric patient populations, whether here in Dallas or across the globe. The Pediatric Global Health Education Program was created to mentor residents and offer training in international medicine and public health. 

Our residents travel around the globe to gain experience in delivering health care in developing nations. During their international rotations at over 25 different sites to date, residents have helped to initiate lasting impact projects such as community health worker trainings, Helping Babies Breathe midwife trainings, developmental screenings, preventive health programs and continuing education seminars. These projects often become part of residents’ longitudinal scholarly projects. We encourage making connections with programs and hospitals serving a population of interest to each individual resident; this allows residents to mold the rotation into an experience that is fulfilling, beneficial to the host institution, and preparation for their own careers.

Travelling abroad is not the only avenue for learning about global health. Residents can also participate in the Dallas Global Health Elective (see below) to increase their knowledge and improve skills needed for practicing medicine in limited resource settings. Our residents can also travel domestically to care for specific patient populations through our border health elective as well as in the Navajo Nation. Additionally, our endowment-funded Global Health Interest Group joins residents, students and faculty from across disciplines to take part in discussions, seminars and skills workshops on various topics related to global health.

Here in North Texas, we also have the benefit of living with and serving a globally diverse population. Dallas is home to a large Hispanic and African American population, as well as a growing refugee population from Cambodia, Iraq, Burundi, and Bhutan. As residents we learn to address socioeconomic and healthcare disparities in culturally sensitive ways in order to provide the best care possible for our patients.

Dallas global health elective

A multidisciplinary rotation combining online didactic modules, hands-on training, group activities, and case-based simulations to prepare residents to deliver holistic care abroad. 

The elective is organized into themed weeks consisting of: diseases of poverty and microbiology, procedural skills, ancillary staff skills, public health and global health ethics.

During the rotation, residents will work with microbiologists, pharmacists, respiratory therapists, emergency medicine physicians, infectious disease specialists, nurses, physical therapists and other staff to learn how to provide care in a location with minimal support staff and resources. In addition, residents receive training and hands-on practice in bedside ultrasound, suturing, splinting and other procedures.  Coupled with these clinical experiences is an e-learning component that captures some of our top teaching faculty giving lectures on topics such as HIV in the developing world, malnutrition and oral rehydration, and global health ethics. At the end of the rotation, residents participate in a case-based simulation during which they utilize their newly acquired knowledge and skills to navigate difficult clinical scenarios in a safe environment preparing them for future experiences in resource-limited settings.