KOTA KINABALU – A delegation from Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) consisting of Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) students (Cohort 2021/2024) and two senior lecturers, Dr. Mohd Faizal Madrim and Dr. Zulkhairul Naim Sidek Ahmad from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) visited the College of Public Health, University of the Philippines, Manila (CPH-UPM), and the Western Pacific Region Office of World Health Organisation (WHO) recently.

According to Mohd Faizal, the primary objective of this visit was to enhance the knowledge of the DrPH students on public health practises as well as programmes or services in public health that are being implemented in the Philippines and to share experiences, thoughts, or new ideas between the two universities.

“During the visit, the team engaged in various activities and discussions with the members of CPH-UPM, and the Western Pacific Region Office of WHO.

“The team had the opportunity to learn about the innovative public health programmes being implemented in the Philippines and the challenges faced in the implementation process, and also shared their experiences and ideas on public health practises in Malaysia,” he said.

He added that the two universities’ exchange of ideas and experiences resulted in fruitful discussions and the planning of future collaborative works.

“Both universities expressed interest in continuing to work together in the future to address public health issues that are common to both countries.

“In conclusion, the visit was successful in achieving its main objective of enhancing the knowledge of the DrPH students on public health practises as well as programmes or services in public health that are being implemented in the Philippines and sharing experiences, thoughts, or new ideas between the two universities,” said Mohd Faizal, who also hoping that this visit could sparked the idea for future collaborative projects.