GW Faculty Member Dr. Lisa Alexander Receives Fulbright Specialists Award

WASHINGTON—Dr. Lisa Alexander, PA, MPH, Ed.D, the Assistant Dean for community-based partnerships at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and affiliate of the George Washington University Africa Center for Health and Human Security, was recently named a Fulbright Senior Specialist for her proposed work in Rwanda. As a member of the Fulbright Specialists Program, Dr. Alexander will develop Rwanda's first non-physician clinician training program in partnership with the Kigali Health Institute (KHI) and the Rwanda Ministry of Health.

Health workforce shortages and challenges are present throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, including Rwanda. Without enough or properly trained health workers, health systems collapse. Rwanda has expanded training for physicians and nurses, however, there is no training program in Rwanda for non-physician clinicians, the equivalent of physician assistants. With the country’s approach to health service delivery through community health and local level approaches, there is great opportunity and need for non-physician clinicians at the community level.

The need for training of non-physician clinicians was highlighted at a recent Maternal and Child Health Conference, co-hosted by the Africa Center and the Rwandan Ministry of Health. “At the conference, the Rwandan Ministry was pushed to say, ‘we need to address maternal mortality, we need to address workforce issues, let’s do it’,” said Dr. Alexander, who has played a key role in fostering and developing the ongoing relationship between Rwanda and the Africa Center over the last three years.

Dr. Alexander’s project will feature close collaboration with the Rwanda Ministry of Health and other faculty members to plan and develop a rural health training curriculum for non-physician clinicians. This new curriculum, which will be developed over three 14-day trips during the next year, will eventually result in a cadre of mid-level health professionals which will play a central role in the development of the health system and the country of Rwanda.

The Fulbright Specialists Program promotes links U.S. academics and professionals with counterparts from universities abroad. The program awards grants to qualified U.S. faculty and professionals, in select disciplines, to engage in short-term collaborative 2 to 6 week projects at higher education institutions in over 100 countries worldwide. For more information about the Fulbright Specialists Program, visit http://www.cies.org/specialists/.

The Africa Center offers multiple opportunities for students, faculty, and donors to get involved with the Africa Center’s events and programs. For upcoming opportunities please contact the Africa Center at gwafricacenter@gwumc.edu.