Environmental Health Training Programs in Azerbaijan

Abstract

ISEE-814 Objective: The development of environmental and public health education is an important priority for international aid and for national government attention. This provides a challenge of integrating experience from many countries in the industrialized world and academic centers of excellence in the field of environmental and public health. Azerbaijan, similar to other countries of Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union, is facing a complex mix of environmental health problems and at the same time endeavoring to reform its health and education system. Materials and Methods: Environmental health was/is not taught as an independent discipline at the state universities in Azerbaijan. There are also no publications or textbooks in environmental and public health in native language. In assessing workforce needs, it is important to note that most of the environmental and public health workers in Azerbaijan have no formal postgraduate training in environmental and public health. The basic training as sanitarians and technicians is primarily hygiene and infectious disease oriented. That is why there is a need for university-based postgraduate training to establish the concepts of environmental health and modern public health among current leaders, researchers, policy analysts, managers, and decision makers. Reforms are urgently needed in training/education for students in public health, medicine, nursing, and other allied health profession, nursing, engineering, environmental science, management, and others needing a basic introduction to environmental health. Taking into consideration the situation, ISEE Caucasus Chapter with the Khazar University and the Texas A&M is organizing Environmental Health Workshop in June, 2007, in Azerbaijan. Results: At the end of the workshop the future training programs in environmental health will be discussed. Conclusions: Feedback will be obtained from the participants to evaluate the process, content, and effectiveness of the workshop.

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