Shared learning in an interconnected world: the role of international health partnerships

A novel data solution to inform curriculum decolonisation: the case of the Imperial College London Masters of Public Health

There is increasing interest within Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to examine curricula for legacies of colonialism or empire that might result in a preponderance of references to research from the global north. Prior attempts to study reading lists for author geographies have employed resource-intensive audit and data collection methods based on manual searching and tagging individual reading list items by characteristics such as author country or place of publication. However, these manual methods are impractical for large reading lists with hundreds of citations that change over instances the course is taught. Laborious manual methods may explain why there is a lack of quantitative evidence to inform this debate and the understanding of geographic distribution of curricula. We describe a novel computational method applied to 568 articles, representing 3166 authors from the Imperial College London Masters in Public Health programme over two time periods (2017–18 and 2019–20). Described with summary statistics, we found a marginal shift away from global north-affiliated authors on the reading lists of one Masters course over two time periods and contextualise the role and limitations of the use of quantitative data in the decolonisation discourse. The method provides opportunities for educators to examine the distribution of course readings at pace and over time, serving as a useful point of departure to engage in decolonisation debates.

Using a cross-contextual reciprocal learning approach in a multisite implementation research project to improve self-management for type 2 diabetes

This paper reports on the use of reciprocal learning for identifying, adopting and adapting a type 2 diabetes self-management support intervention in a multisite implementation trial conducted in a rural setting in a low-income country (Uganda), a periurban township in a middle-income country (South Africa) and socioeconomically disadvantaged suburbs in a high-income country (Sweden). The learning process was guided by a framework for knowledge translation and structured into three learning cycles, allowing for a balance between evidence, stakeholder interaction and contextual adaptation. Key factors included commitment, common goals, leadership and partnerships. Synergistic outcomes were the cocreation of knowledge, interventions and implementation methods, including reverse innovations such as adaption of community-linked models of care. Contextualisation was achieved by cross-site exchanges and local stakeholder interaction to balance intervention fidelity with local adaptation. Interdisciplinary and cross-site collaboration resulted in the establishment of learning networks. Limitations of reciprocal learning relate to the complexity of the process with unpredictable outcomes and the limited generalisability of results.