History

History

History

The School of Public Health and Community Development was established in 2001, admitting its first students in September 2002. These were students in the Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences and the Master of Science in Public Health, the two programmes offered at the School’s inception. The Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Sciences had three options: Medical Biotechnology, Laboratory Medicine and Pharmacology. In 2004 the MSc in Community Nutrition and Development programme was relocated to the School of Public Health and Community Development following a restructuring that saw the phasing out of the School of Family, Consumer Sciences and Technology (SOFCONSTEC) where it was initially housed. The School of Public Health and Community Development has since expanded and now has three departments: Department of Public Health, Department of Nutrition & Health, and Department of Biomedical Sciences & Technology all offering both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. We currently offer programmes at the Main campus in Maseno, the e-Campus, and Kisumu City Campus as specified in the information provided under Departments in the School.

 

Overview

The School of Public Health and Community Development comprises three teaching departments: Department of Public Health, Department of Nutrition and Health and Department of Biomedical Sciences and Technology, and a service department: the Aids Control Unit (ACU).  The four departments complement each other in building capacity through training; and addressing, through research and community service, existing health challenges with the aim of promoting health, preventing, and controlling the disease. This is facilitated by dedicated staff in various areas of expertise ranging from molecular, through individual, small group, community, and broader population-level approaches; as well as university and broader community outreach by the ACU. The School is currently expanding its community outreach to create opportunities for more interaction of the students and academic faculty with the surrounding communities whilst expanding opportunities for research and participatory innovations in addressing community health-related challenges. 

The School hosts an HIV awareness mainstreaming course, teaching up to 6000 students at a time on our online platform. Our MPH programme is offered both faces to face and online to cater to students unable to enroll in the latter mode of study. The online programme is housed at the e-Campus and all other Masters programmes are housed at the Kisumu City Campus.  Although our BSc programmes are largely housed at the Main campus in Maseno, we also offer weekend BSc Public Health, Health Records and Information Management, and Health Systems Management courses at the Kisumu City Campus.  The multidisciplinary nature of programmes in the School provides opportunities to draw from expertise in all disciplines in the University, for training and research, enriching our students’ learning experience.

 

Vision

To be the Centre of community health interventions; and quality teaching and research in Public Health

 

Mission

To impart skills and knowledge in Public Health to students for the realization of reduction of health problems in communities

 

Core Values

Relevance, Integrity, Universality, Excellence, Quality, Equity, Equality

 

Service Charter

The mandate of the School of Public Health and Community Development is to train and produce practical-oriented health professionals and scientists that contribute effectively to the social, intellectual, and academic development at the national, regional, and international arena.

 

Strategic Focus: 2016-2022

  • Strengthening human resource capacity

  • Health needs-driven quality training, research, and innovation

  • Infrastructure development

  • Expansion of academic programmes

  • Community access and impact

  • Resource mobilization and financial sustainability