About the Office of Global Health

COVID-19 UPDATE:

The ongoing COVID Pandemic has Highlighted our global interconnectedness. While we continue to see the impact on all aspects of life, we encourage everyone to continue to take the proper precautions and remain safe. The following are areas directly affecting us:

Our Global Health Programming is currently operating on a case-to-case basis with close adherence to health and travel restrictions as per Rutgers Policy. Please contact the Office of Global Health for more details.
Rutgers is now aligned with the quarantine and travel recommendations put forth by the New Jersey Department of Health.

International travelers should review the Rutgers Travel Guidelines, CDC’s COVID-19 travel recommendations by destination. Please check New Jersey Department of Health guidelines for the most up-to-date information and guidance.

Please refer to: https://coronavirus.rutgers.edu

Javier I. Escobar, MD

Associate Dean for Global Health
Professor of Psychiatry and Family Medicine

We are in a global age. While the world economy was the first to follow this path, it has quickly spread to other areas such as health, and many leading US academic institutions, have by now, embraced global issues.

According to AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) data, there has been a significant increase in the number of medical students that participate in overseas clinical activities (from 6% a decade ago, to almost 40% since 2000) and these numbers keep growing. Here at RWJMS, previous surveys show that over one-third of RWJMS medical students indicated an interest in participating in a rotation abroad during their medical school years.

The major goals of the global health programs are:

To enhance medical students’ awareness of global issues related to health
To encourage medical students to immerse themselves in the culture and health system of other countries
To send groups of medical students to different institutions all over the world with whom we have ongoing educational collaborations
To provide information about clinical and community programs in diverse ethnic communities in New Jersey that would benefit & enhance the clinical experiences of students
To stimulate and support international activities of the faculty including educational, clinical, and research activities

Medical Students' International Rotations

The major goals of this experience are to sharpen students’ interviewing and physical examination skills, their understanding of cost-constrained care, and the importance of public health; to influence future US physicians to serve domestic under-served populations and to enhance the ability for future physicians to advocate for the needs of under-served patient populations throughout the world. Taking advantage of many of the above agreements and active collaborations, we have summer experiences for our RWJMS students. We have sent students to Japan, Taiwan, Ecuador, Peru, Argentina, India, Bangladesh, and Ireland. Students get exposure to ongoing clinical, academic, and research programs including visits to rural areas. The students also visit community clinics and collaborate with local students and faculty.

Javier I. Escobar, MD

Associate Dean for Global Health