On October 12-16, 2020, researchers from the Avedisian Onanian Center for Health Services Research and Development (CHSR) of the Turpanjian School of Public Health (SPH) represented the American University of Armenia (AUA) at the 16th World Congress on Public Health.
The event is organized every four years but was the first to be held virtually. The theme of the congress was “Public health for the future of humanity: analysis, advocacy and action.” The AUA SPH team contributed to the deliberations through several poster display sessions on topics of significance to public health, as follows: “Barriers to reproductive health services utilization among adolescents” by Varduhi Hayrumyan (MPH ’16); “Gender differences in perceived stress level among undergraduate students in Armenia” by Arusyak Harutyunyan (MPH ’09); “Factors associated with car safety seats use” by Zhanna Sargsyan (MPH ’18); “Challenges in meeting patient assessment international standards in ambulatory tuberculosis services” and “An assessment of the Armenian national midwifery curriculum as per international standards” by Lusine Aslanyan (MPH ’18); and “Do primary healthcare providers have the competency of providing adolescent-friendly health services?” by Zaruhi Grigoryan (MPH ’15).
In addition, the AUA SPH research team organized a workshop on “People-centered Approach in TB Treatment: Experience from Eastern European Countries.” The SPH team shared their experiences with international experts, including other presenters and attendees of the workshop. SPH Dean Dr. Varduhi Petrosyan chaired the workshop, while SPH Research Associates Serine Sahakyan (MPH ’15), Lusine Musgeghyan (MPH ’14) and Zaruhi Grigoryan (MPH ’15), along with Evgenia Geliukh, TB/HIV program manager from Ukraine, made presentations about innovative approaches to TB treatment in Armenia and Ukraine. The presentation topics included “Moving Towards People-Centered Approach in TB Health Care System: Armenia’s Experience” by Sahakyan; “Integrating psychosocial counseling in TB Services in Armenia” by Musheghyan; “Patient-centered approaches applied in inpatient and outpatient TB services in Armenia” by Grigoryan; “Using patient–centered approach for improving adherence to treatment in DS/DR–TB patients in Ukraine” by Geliukh.
Organizing this workshop and participating in conferences, such as the World Congress on Public Health, are an integral part of raising awareness about innovative solutions in public health realized in Armenia and sharing those with the international community of scholars and experts. Such platforms also provide the right medium for promoting AUA and its role in global public health innovation.
Most of the SPH representatives received either AUA Professional Development Grants or partial scholarships from the organizers to participate in the 16th World Congress on Public Health.
The AUA Turpanjian School of Public Health works actively to improve population health and health services in Armenia and beyond through interdisciplinary education and development of public health professionals to be leaders in public health, health services research and evaluation, and health care delivery and management.