Health Diplomacy Training Institute

Thank you for your interest in the Center for Global Health Science & Security, Health Diplomacy Training Institute. Our inaugural programs were held in June 2023 and we are grateful to all of trainers and attendees for helping to make our first year a resounding success!

Preliminary information for our 2024 institute is available below. Please check back regularly, as we plan to update this page with more information in the coming months. We look forward to seeing you in May 2024!

Are you interested in exploring the relationship between global health issues, international affairs, and national security or gaining new technical programming skills from leading global health experts? If so, join us for the Health Diplomacy Training Institute from May 20-June 7, 2024. During this intensive three week training initiative, students and professionals from diverse industries may choose to enroll in one or many programs offered jointly through Georgetown University and the Georgetown University Center for Global Health Science and Security.

Application Process

Application for the 2024 cycle is now live! To apply, please enter a CV and 1-page letter of interest/cover letter by clicking the apply button below. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis and admission decisions will be sent to applicants within one month of submission. The final deadline for application is May 1, 2024. Upon reception of acceptance, applicants will be invited to register for courses. Course prices are available within the application form. If you are accepted, yet course fees present a significant barrier for attendance, details for requesting course fee reductions will be provided in all acceptance emails. Provision of course fee reductions will be decided on an individual basis and will be made by the Institute Director. 

Programs Offered

Data Science Basics in R (1 credit)

June 3-7, 2024, Afternoons

Instructor: Stephanie Eaneff, M.S.P.

This course will build literacy and basic proficiency in statistical programming, with a focus on the skills needed to conduct data analyses in professional healthcare and public health workspaces. We will cover the basics of data management, data cleaning, data visualization, and basic statistical calculations in R, and version control in github. Participants will leave with a small portfolio of relevant data visualizations and analyses completed using a real‐world public health dataset.

Bioeconomy

May 21-23, 2024, Mornings

Instructor: Ryan Morhard, J.D.

In September 2022, Jake Sullivan—President Biden’s national security adviser—stated that the U.S. government expects biotechnology to play an “outsized importance over the coming decade” in the context of geopolitical competition, because of the ability to “read, write, and edit genetic code, which has rendered biology programmable.” Driven by governments and businesses looking to meet emissions reductions targets, maintain resilient supply chains, ensure food security, and further reduce reliance on fossil fuels, experts anticipate that, by the end of the decade, biotechnology could be used extensively in manufacturing industries that account for more than a third of global output—a shade under $30 trillion in terms of value. To compete during the computer revolution, countries developed new national security and economic strategies to address the geopolitics of information—all indications are that world leaders will need to similarly adapt to the biotechnology revolution. This 3.0 credit course introduces students to key trends and technologies, considers some of the major applications and geopolitical implications, and provides practical experience and insights for international affairs and the emerging bioeconomy.

Business in Pandemics Workshop

*Postponed* Check back for updated schedule soon!

Instructors: Timothy Manning and Rebecca Katz

Throughout the global COVID response, the fragility of the global supply chain and worldwide manufacturing capacity were major constraints on the ability of public health communities to respond and control disease spread. While most acute during COVID, these challenges have been replayed repeatedly; shortages created difficulties in the 2009 H1N1 response, the 2014 Ebola outbreak, the 2015 Zika outbreak, and then again in the 2021 M Pox outbreak and baby formula shortages.

This multi-day seminar is designed to bring together industry, non-public health government decision makers, and public health practitioners to explore the seams and joint capabilities to build more effective plans and response approaches for future health emergencies. Through a series of case studies, lectures and group discussions, the seminar will cover both the major theoretical public health approaches to an emerging outbreak, what tools are needed and how they would be deployed; how to model out the required volume, distribution, logistics, and timelines for deployment, how the private sector might respond to the needs and challenges, and what non-health government support might be needed. We will then explore the manufacturing and private sector management elements of making those tools and getting them into the hands of responders. Finally, we will discuss the major policy levers and their limitations as well as and innovative approaches to support, such as the Defense Production Act, industrial mobilization, and public-private partnerships.

Rapid Qualitative Methods and Analysis During Disease Outbreaks

June 4-7, 9AM-11AM EST, Online only

Instructor: Sharon Abramowitz

The goals of professional certification course is to (1) introduce and practice specific rapid qualitative methodologies (RQMs); (2) train students in qualitative data coding, analysis and interpretation; and (3) prepare students to present qualitative data findings for integrated outbreak analytics contexts. Participants will be exposed to a range of methodologies beyond baseline key informant interviews, focus groups, and surveys, including methodologies leveraging local network analysis, time-based research, and spatial analysis. Participants will gain facility with the use of pre-formatted codebooks and data frameworks using novel frameworks developed by leading governmental and multilateral stakeholders in outbreak response. Participants will also have the opportunity to work with integrated data analytics visualization and presentation approaches. It is appropriate for practitioners, policy makers, and researchers who specialize in social science, community engagement, risk communication, and behavior change during disease outbreaks.

One Health: Policy and Practice

May 28-31, 9AM-12PM, Online only

Instructors: Claire Standley and Catherine Wood

One Health: Policy and Practice will provide students with an introduction to the concept of One Health, an approach which emphasizes the importance of a holistic consideration of the interconnectedness of human, animal and environmental health. Taking a case study approach covering a diversity of global settings and health topics, students will learn about how One Health initiatives are implemented on-the-ground to solve priority challenges. The course will also consider how evidence generated from integrated and holistic implementation has contributed national and global policy frameworks guided by a One Health lens, and how in turn, these governance efforts are now influencing research and practice.

Applications and Financing

For more information on the courses listed above, pricing, and to express your interest in attending the Institute, please fill out this interest form.

Courses offered for credit will be available to current Georgetown students through the registrar beginning in Spring 2024. These courses will also be offered for non-credit seeking participants. Workshops are open to all interested participants.