OBJECTIVES
Public Nutrition Department, Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan (MoPH) with support from Aga Khan Foundation, Afghanistan (AKFA) is offering an intensive one year program focused on providing comprehensive context specific training in Public Health Nutrition (PHN).
Development of skilled workforce is an important strategy that helps in building capacity for organized efforts to address nutrition-related problems. Citing the huge challenge of malnutrition especially among women and children of Afghanistan, development of skilled workforce to manage and implement nutrition interventions is one of the important strategies. A context specific academic programme can help to develop skilled work force to implement nutrition strategies at the grass root level. In this context, to accelerate public health nutrition workforce development as priority task, Public Nutrition Department, Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan (MOPH) in collaboration with Indian Institute of Public Health-Delhi, Public Health Foundation of India and Aga Khan Foundation, Afghanistan (AKFA) announced the launch of Executive Post Graduate Diploma in Public Health Nutrition.
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COURSE DESIGN & DURATION
Designed as a one year postgraduate diploma program, the course focuses on the following:
• Fundamentals of nutrition
• Nutrition epidemiology and research methods
•Nutrition policies and programs
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ELIGIBILITY
The course is open to the following candidates:
• Graduates in Medical, Dental, Nursing Sciences, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, Pharmacy, or students with a postgraduate degree in Statistics/Biostatistics, Demography, Population Studies, Nutrition, Management.
• Proficiency in English language
•Knowledge of computer
SELECTION CRITERIA
Course would be open for both Govt. and non Govt. candidates. The applications will be screened based on the eligibility criteria. Eligible applicants will then go through a selection process (aptitude test and personal interview).
Aptitude test will be conducted on a pre-defined date. The shortlisted candidates will then undergo a round of personal interview for final selection.
COURSE OUTLINE
This postgraduate diploma aims to provide comprehensive training in public health nutrition in a context of situation of Afghanistan. It provides an integrated program covering dietary, epidemiological, public health, social and biological aspects of nutritional science. Special topics include biostatistics, maternal and child nutrition, food policy, nutrition program planning, monitoring and evaluation and nutritional epidemiology. The program is particularly suitable for people whose employment overlaps the nutritional area such as program managers, health workers, medical practitioners, dieticians, pharmacists, nurses, health educators and teachers, and those who wish to avail themselves of contemporary ideas in human nutrition.
Participants will also complete a short research project in the form of a project synopsis, which will enable them to work on a subject of special interest, practice skills of analysis and presentation, and integrate different aspects of course work.
TEACHING & COURSE DELIVERY METHODOLOGY
The course will be delivered in the hybrid/blended learning mode, i.e., through a mixture of recorded and live eLearning sessions that will be conducted by faculty members with students logging in from their location. A candidate is expected to travel to India twice in a year for contact sessions (3 week/session) at IIPHD during the course.
The greatest advantage of eLearning is that students can learn at their pace. The offline components of the course (a written manual) will be complemented by online lectures (online sessions using power‐point presentations).
EVALUATION
Students will be evaluated through a combination of individual module assessments, final online examination at the end of year and a project report to be submitted before completion of the course.
