News

GEMx is pleased to welcome the Conservation and Ecosystem Health Alliance (CEHA) to the GEMx Partnership. Headquartered in Kampala, Uganda, CEHA’s mission is “to achieve sustainable conservation through multidisciplinary research while promoting nature conservation, ecosystem and human health.” To support its mission, CEHA has formed the EcoHealth Research Group, which focuses its efforts on identifying areas for research, directing resources to support those areas, and building capacity in the sciences in Africa. Current areas of research include study of the Albertine Rift ecosystem in the Murchison Falls and Queen Elizabeth National Parks in Uganda, in collaboration with the University of Arizona, as well as the study of endangered chimpanzees and other species in fragmented forest patches in the Hoima District ecosystem in western Uganda, in collaboration with the University of Minnesota. As part of its efforts to build capacity in the sciences, CEHA also offers internships to both national and international students, enabling them to work with Ugandan researchers on short-term projects. Participants have included students in medicine, nursing, veterinary science, and public health.

Through GEMx, CEHA will offer students of GEMx Partners short-term research placements, electives, and internships with health centers, community field attachments, hospitals, and teaching universities throughout Uganda. Opportunities will be available to students interested in public and community health to learn how to design and implement projects focusing on the health concerns of local communities within Uganda. Through GEMx, CEHA also provides a field experiential learning course using the One Health approach, in which students can engage in cross-sector collaboration among various health professions.

GEMx looks forward to collaborating with CEHA to offer students of GEMx Partners these diverse and exciting elective opportunities!

The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG^®) has announced that the GEMx_SM program will expand beyond medicine to serve other health professions. We are excited about this development and look forward to facilitating exchange opportunities across the health professions, around the world. Through expansion to professions such as nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, and others, GEMx will promote greater interdisciplinary education and strengthen relationships across the health professions.

We invite representatives of interested schools and other institutions from the health professions to contact us to explore how GEMx could meet your needs for educational exchange and to learn more about the benefits of membership in GEMx. GEMx program staff can be reached at info@gemxelectives.org or at 001 (215) 823-2288 (telephone hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time in the United States). You can also sign up to speak with us via Skype or teleconference by using our on-line booking system.

Read the full ECFMG press release.

GEMx is pleased to announce the GEMx Student Exchange Grants, an exciting new benefit for GEMx Partners and their students. Through Student Exchange Grants, the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG^®) offers financial awards to help expand opportunities for international exchange in medical education. Grants of US$1,000 are available for up to two qualifying students from each Partner Institution. Students can use these grants for travel, lodging, and incidental expenses associated with participating in an elective offered through GEMx. ECFMG is offering these grants to support students with financial challenges that otherwise would prevent them from participating in a GEMx exchange elective.

GEMx Student Exchange Grants are an additional benefit for our valued Partners. We share our Partners’ commitment to advancing global education in medicine and ultimately improving health care worldwide, and we recognize that international student exchanges are essential to achieving these outcomes. However, we also understand that some students face financial challenges that make participating in an international exchange elective difficult, or even impossible, without assistance. To help address this issue, and in keeping with the GEMx value of affordability, ECFMG has established the GEMx Student Exchange Grants to help Partners and their students take full advantage of all that GEMx has to offer.

The application process for GEMx Student Exchange Grants begins in July 2015 for grants that will support students who seek electives that begin in 2016. If you are a student of a GEMx Partner and are interested in participating in an elective through GEMx and applying for a GEMx Student Exchange Grant, please visit the GEMx Student Exchange Grants page on the GEMx website for complete information and eligibility requirements.

If your medical school or institution is not currently a GEMx Partner, but may be interested in joining, please fill out our convenient Institution Contact Request Form and we will reach out to your institution with more information on how to join the GEMx partnership.

For more information on GEMx Student Exchange Grants please send an e-mail to info@gemxelectives.org.

The deadline for applying to the 2015 Student Projects for Health competition has been extended; applications can now be submitted through May 15.

The Student Projects for Health competition recognizes currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students who have made outstanding contributions to projects that successfully promote community health and well-being. GEMx and the Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER) are both proud supporters of the competition.

Winners of the 2015 Student Projects for Health competition will be invited to present their projects at the joint conference of The Network: Towards Unity for Health (TUFH) and the South African Association of Health Educationalists (SAAHE) that will take place in Gauteng Province, South Africa, September 12–16, 2015. Up to 20 winners will be selected. For more information and to apply, please visit https://faimer.fluidreview.com/res/p/student-projects-for-heal/.

The Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER^®) has published this engaging and informative five-minute video on GEMx and the importance of global student exchanges to health professions education and to the provision of health care worldwide. Titled “Global Student Exchanges: How Can They Work for Everyone?” and filmed at FAIMER’s 2014 International Medical Education (IME) Day, the video highlights both the challenges and opportunities of student exchanges in the health professions and provides insight on how GEMx and FAIMER are collaborating to find solutions to those challenges and take advantage of those opportunities.