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University of Florida

Sharing Public Health Issues and Cultures


UF Faculty: Heather Stark
Department: Department of Epidemiology
College: College of Public Health and Health Professions,
College of Medicine

Partner Faculty: Etienne Nsereko
Department: College of Medicine and Health Sciences
Partner Institution: University of Rwanda
Title: Virtual Exchange Sharing Public Health Issues and Cultures
Project Description: This Virtual Exchange course, which spans a period of four weeks, offers a unique opportunity to delve into the realm of Public Health while fostering international skills and collaboration. In this immersive program, students will gain a deeper understanding of the innovative methods of communication needed to address health challenges in diverse global communities. By participating in this exchange, students will not only broaden their public health knowledge but also recognize the impact of culture on health outcomes.
Learning Outcomes:
  • Students will recognize some concepts of culture and its functions in our lives and how it affects health outcomes.
  • Students will reflect on the dimension of their own identity and how they relate to their interaction with people from other cultures.
  • Students will recognize the influence of their own culture on their intercultural interactions.
  • Students will be able to acknowledge and respect different cultural approaches to problem solving.
  • Students will be able to develop critical thinking from the ethical perspective of interculturalism, in order to analyze the present and facilitate future projects.
  • Students will be able to listen to others actively and respond in culturally appropriate ways.
Participating Countries: Rwanda
Number of Participants: 4 UF students and 3 University of Rwanda students
Discipline: Global Health
UF Course Code & Name: HSC4930 - Global Public Health
Project Duration: 4 weeks
Activity Type(s): Student-to-Student Dialogue
Technology Tools:
  • Zoom
  • Whatsapp
  • Canvas
  • Padlet
Sequence of Activities:
  • Icebreaker Activity:
    • 1st icebreaker: Each student will create a video Introducing themselves, something they like to do, talk about your country and something special about where they live (if someone visited what would they take them to do) _ Flipgrid
    • 2nd icebreaker: Post a picture to the discussion board, post a picture of your favorite food and describe the food on Padlet.

  • Collaboration Activity:

Students will be presented with a public health issue from the other country with a description of background and common public health issue and each team will need to devise a public health approach for the public health issue. They will need to meet with students from that country to better understand the social and cultural aspects and how they impact public health. Then the groups will present their overall assessment.

  • Reflection Activity:

Students will write a one-page reflection paper on their experience.