Earlier this year, Dr Christine Barrett, a Brunel Alumnus and Honorary Lecturer in the Division of Global Public Health organised and delivered a short course in the ‘Intervention Mapping’ Approach to over 30 postgraduate students at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi, Ghana.
This is a systematic approach, using theory and evidence to assess and design interventions for health problems, increasing the likelihood of their success. The course was based on Health Promotion lectures from Dr Kei Long Cheung and Dr Barrett in Brunel’s MSc in Public Health and Health Promotion degree.
Dr Barrett adapted the material to address needs specific to the local community in Ghana. The course involved lectures and groupwork sessions in which students applied the learning while having supportive feedback. A post course survey showed that most students progressed from knowing nothing about the topic to having a good level of knowledge on completion of the course. All students who responded assessed Dr Barrett as very supportive or supportive.
Typical comments about what the students felt was worthwhile about the training process included “the lecturer’s support throughout the groupwork”, “how it was participatory”, “the ability to be able to identify issues (for) some communities and being able to generate solutions according to the different perspectives of the individual”.
Dr Barrett saw the course as a wonderful opportunity to provide training to students who would otherwise not have had this option, as well as understand some of the issues within the region.
Thanks are due to Professor Nana Anokye (Brunel), Professor Peter Agyei-Baffour (KNUST), and Francisca Egyaim (KNUST) in facilitating this course. Dr Barrett is hoping to return to Ghana next year and also is looking for opportunities in other countries in Africa and Asia, to deliver the Intervention Mapping Course.