Chennai: Sri Ramachandra University (SRU), in association with University of California, Berkeley (UCB) has recently launched a Master's programme in public health (occupational and environmental health) following a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between S.P.Thyagarajan, pro-chancellor (research), representing SRU, and Stephen M.Shortell, dean, school of public health, representing UCB.

The applicants, in order to be eligible for the course, are ought to have a medical or engineering degree or a Master of Science post-graduate degree.

"The course aims to prepare students in public health laying special emphasis on occupational and environmental aspects, which will allow the graduates to improve their career aspects by becoming environmental and health safety experts and consultants for the organized and unorganized sectors," said Kalpana Balakrishnan, head, department of environmental health engineering.

She said that the SRU-UCB collaborative venture was being supported by the International Training and Research Program in Environmental and Occupational Health Program of the Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, U.S.

"Along with collaborations with various government departments and industry associations, this new initiative will also strengthened by several inter-institutional partnerships within the country," she added.

SRU already offers two courses - a Master of Science in Industrial Health and Safety and a PG certificate course in Industrial Health.

"As a part of the ongoing programme of human resources development in areas and content that is relevant to the Board's interests, it would consider a proposal to fund two students to the programme on a continuous basis every year," said R.Balakrishnan, chairman, Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board.

Dr. Shortell enumerated that pandemics is speedily spreading across the world due to migrants and global travelers while the double burden of chronic and infectious diseases; climate change and its ramifications; the ability to access healthcare; and a need to restructure the healthcare delivery systems are some of the key challenges of the future.

These issues being mutually dependant need to be addressed at multiple levels. The biggest challenge would be to implement these operations as soon as possible.

Professor Thyagarajan said that, funded by the Fogarty International Center, it was for the first time that a course is being launched even though the collaboration with the UCB is since 2002.

He added that faculty and student exchanges were included in the memorandum.

The department of environmental health engineering is in the process of being recognised as a "Centre for Advanced Research for Environmental Health: Air Pollution" by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR).

SRU Chancellor V.R.Venkataachalam offered a letter of invitation to Kirk Smith , professor of Global Environmental Health, UCB, to serve as visiting professor at SRU who is also on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.