Better Together

The UIC Center for Global Health
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BETTER TOGETHER is a podcast for global health change-makers. The struggles we face are bigger than any one person, but we can each take a step to make a difference. BETTER TOGETHER is a podcast where aspiring global health practitioners can learn from engaged, globally-focused health care professionals who are doing their part to improve health for all. The BETTER TOGETHER podcast team is a group of globally-minded medical students, residents, and faculty joined together by our mission of health equity for everyone.

  1. Jun 16

    Episode 19: Translational Research and Public Health Policy

    The purpose of scientific research is to generate evidence to guide healthcare practices. Today’s episode will focus on the translation of global health research and science into policy. Dr. Parminder Suchdev is a physician-epidemiologist, who has served with the CDC and as the Associate Director of the Emory Global Health Institute. He joins Better Together to discuss the structured cycle from evidence to policy and the importance of translating research into the 3 Ps of policy, program, and practice. With his experience in micronutrient malnutrition research, he shares key strategies for implementation including building partnerships (not just publications), considering the local context, and the importance of communication using a SOCO (single overriding communication objective) and stats along with stories. Finally, he stresses the importance of “grounding advances in equity” as fundamental to global health work.

  2. May 19

    Episode 18: Indigenous Health

    Indigenous communities, both in the U.S. and around the globe, face significant health disparities due to numerous factors including structural racism, poverty, historical forced assimilation, intergenerational trauma, and underfunding. Dr. Valerie Dobiesz, Director of the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative’s Front Line Indigenous Program (FLIP), joins Better Together to discuss academic and clinical partnerships and career pathway programs designed to address these disparities through workforce development and capacity building.

  3. Mar 31

    Episode 17: Global Health Funding

    Funding for global health is a perpetual challenge. Given recent cuts in federal funding, many global health practitioners are considering what the future looks like to find support for global health work and for their own career development. Dr. Indi Trehan joins Better Together to share his journey, sharing pearls about mentorship, how to be effective in capacity-building and research, and creative paths for funding. He discusses nuances of different funders including motivations, agility, oversight, and alignment with advocacy efforts, and how current politics affect the global health funding landscape.

  4. 12/09/2025

    Episode 16: Clinical Trials

    Clinical trials are a cornerstone of advancing medical knowledge, yet significant disparities remain in how research is conducted globally. Dr. Nitya Wadhwa, a pediatrician and physician–scientist, shares her journey from clinician to investigator. She joins Better Together to discuss the process of conducting multi-country clinical trials including design, getting ethical approvals, data collection, analysis, and dissemination. She shares best practices of harmonization, monitoring, and data safety that ensure high-quality rigorous scientific findings that will impact clinical care, leading to improved health outcomes for children and mothers in low-and middle-income countries.

  5. 11/25/2025

    Episode 15: Care Delivery in Conflict Settings

    Medical care in conflict settings is complicated by the destruction of infrastructure and displacement of populations. In this episode, Dr. John Kahler, co-founder of MedGlobal (a non-profit organization that provides medical services to displaced people and communities affected by war and disaster), discusses hurdles of financing, access to care, healthcare worker safety, and sustainability. Agility, utilizing local networks, and training of local providers have fostered MedGlobal’s success while the organization navigates challenges of scaling, bureaucracy, and a landscape of changing government political will and funding for international development.

  6. 08/27/2025

    Episode 14: Best Practices in Short Term Global Health Experiences

    Short term global health experiences for students, trainees, and even licensed health providers have often been plagued by ethical concerns, lack of sustainability, and harmful unintended consequences. Dr. Jessica Evert, a family medicine physician and Global Medical Director of Child Family Health International, joins Better Together to discuss best practices in ethical and sustainable global health experiences. Listen to hear about participation as a learner vs a service provider, taking an assets-based approach, fairtrade learning, and so much more!

  7. 01/07/2025

    Episode 13: "Glocal" Health

    “Glocal” health has been described as a transnational approach to improving healthcare in both “global” and “local” communities with a focus on community engagement, transferable knowledge and skills, bidirectional learning, and social justice. Dr. Stockton Mayer, an infectious disease physician at UIC, joins Better Together to talk about his work with partners and communities in Guatemala and Chicago and “adjusting the paradigm” of health care service delivery based on community needs.

  8. 01/07/2025

    Episode 12: Implementation Science

    Implementation science aims to link evidence-based interventions and policies to real-world practice, bridging the gap between research and actual health outcomes. Dr. Ramnath Subbaraman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at the Tufts University School of Medicine. He joins Better Together to discuss his work in implementation science and “innovations hitting reality,” specifically in tuberculosis (TB) care in India to improve TB prevention, care, and survival.

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About

BETTER TOGETHER is a podcast for global health change-makers. The struggles we face are bigger than any one person, but we can each take a step to make a difference. BETTER TOGETHER is a podcast where aspiring global health practitioners can learn from engaged, globally-focused health care professionals who are doing their part to improve health for all. The BETTER TOGETHER podcast team is a group of globally-minded medical students, residents, and faculty joined together by our mission of health equity for everyone.

Information

  • Creator
    The UIC Center for Global Health
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    19
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © The UIC Center for Global Health
  • Show Website
    Better Together