Public health challenges in Kyrgyzstan: developing a new curriculum

The public health challenges facing the Central Asian Republic of Kyrgyzstan are rooted in the social, economic and political conditions that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Geographically remote and with a substantial part of it's population living in mountainous rural villages, economic recovery and the maintenance of basic standards of public health is now a major problem for the Kyrgyz people. This project report sets out the case for restructuring public health education in Kyrgyzstan. It also explains how a new public health curriculum will equip Kyrgyz students with the knowledge and skills to work effectively with urban and rural communities in this geographically remote region of Central Asia.

With financial support from the European Union's Tempus program St Martin's College, the Kyrgyz State Medical Academy (KSMA) and Pirkanmaa Polytechnic (Finland) worked together to develop a new public health curriculum for Kyrgyzstan. Project activities took place in Kyrgyzstan and Europe throughout 2002-2004 and included English language training, fact finding visits to partner institutions and health services. Seminars and workshops were used to develop curriculum content and to support the design of new programs. A core curriculum team from KSMA, supported by European project staff, devised the new curriculum now on offer in Kyrgyzstan.

The project achieved its three main goals: (1) development of a new public health curriculum; (2) establishment of an international forum for public health in Kyrgyzstan; and (3) dissemination of the project's findings via an international conference and the provision of web based support services.

New courses in Preventive Medicine and Public Health Nursing at KSMA represent a significant cultural shift within public health in Central Asia, complementing the structural reforms of health care introduced in the 1990s. Emphasis on community engagement, health promotion and preventive action enhances knowledge, develops new skills and refocuses work practices for public health staff serving Kyrgyzstan's remote rural communities.