Health Programs

Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative

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"The Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative is building capacity in seven higher education institutions, and participating individuals are clearly expressing their ownership of the process and products."


—Dr. Joyce Murray, director, Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative



The Carter Center Ethiopia Public
Health Training Initiative

The Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative was launched in 1997 by The Carter Center in partnership with the Ethiopian government. In an effort to change the grim realities of Ethiopia's overall  public health status, the initiative is making a difference in the delivery of health care throughout the country. The goal of the Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative is to contribute to improving the health of Ethiopians by enhancing the quality of pre-service training that health staff receive.


EPHTI Training Materials
This site includes modules, lecture notes, and manuals developed by Ethiopians, for Ethiopians. The materials are designed to meet the country's health challenges, particularly in underserved rural populations, where lack of access to health personnel is one of the most significant hurdles to better health. Visit the Site >>


For Ethiopians, the single biggest factor of poor health is lack of access to trained health personnel. The Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative is changing this by creating a corps of qualified health care workers nationwide.


EPHTI Develops Health Curricula
EPHTI, as a collaborative health care training program, creates opportunities in which Ethiopian teaching staff work side by side with international experts to develop curricula and learning materials based on local experience. Teachers and professors at seven Ethiopian universities use these materials to train health students, who, in turn, train and manage community health workers.
 
The seven Ethiopian universities that are part of EPHTI hold workshops to draft and produce training materials such as modules and lecture notes. Modules are topic-specific and address life-threatening diseases, longer-term health promotion, and disease prevention activities. Topics have included health care-related issues, infectious diseases, nutrition, maternal and child health, mental health, reproductive health, water and sanitation, risk behavior modification, and others. Collected from approved government curricula, lecture notes are developed for use as lesson plans within Ethiopian medical classrooms. Lecture notes and modules help to standardize the health learning material taught throughout the country and promote the improved quality of health worker graduates. To date, EPHTI has completed two instruction manuals, more than 70 training modules, and more than 140 sets of lecture notes.


Students make a site visit to a rural community as part of their training.

EPHTI Trains Teachers
EPHTI strengthens the teaching skills of university faculty to better instruct the health professionals they train. Many faculty lack the pedagogical, writing, and supervisory training skills needed to teach their students. The initiative provides workshops, conferences, field training, and other programs to help teachers gain capacity in these areas. Since its inception, EPHTI has trained more than 1,200 faculty members.

Carter Center Photos



EPHTI Trains Health Officers
In 2005, EPHTI expanded its relationship with the Ministry of Health to implement the Accelerated Health Officer Training Program in Ethiopia. As the Ethiopian government has built more health centers to serve the population's health care needs, the shortage of health care officers has increased. EPHTI will use its network of universities, with their affiliated training hospitals and regional health bureaus, and its health learning materials to facilitate this new program. The health officer is the leader of the community-based health center professional staff, and the program's objective is to train 5,000 new health officers by 2010.

EPHTI Provides Equipment to Universities
Teaching is a challenging endeavor under any circumstances, even more so without basic learning materials such as textbooks and classroom equipment. Textbooks in Ethiopia are few and far between and often outdated. EPHTI is committed to supporting the entire training process by providing locally relevant and current teaching materials as well as necessary, tangible classroom materials.



Combating Drought-Related Problems

Learn about EPHTI's project to combat Ethiopia's drought-related health and nutrition problems.
Learn More >>


In 2008, the following classroom materials will be provided to each of the seven partnering universities:

  • $150,000 USD worth of text books and reference books
  • Computers, printers, and a photocopier
  • 10-15 periodical and international scientific journal subscriptions for each university
  • Classroom demonstration materials and basic laboratory equipment, such as anatomical models and microscopes

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Ethiopia Public Health
Training Initiative

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University Partners
Learn more about the location and
work of EPHTI's university partners.
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(Note:  Scroll mouse over city name;  information will appear at bottom.)


View the EPHTI flier >>




View the EPHTI brochure >>