- Dates
- 4-8 September 2023
- Dedicació
- Monday - Friday
- Horari
- 9:00 - 11:00; 11:30 - 13:30; 14:30 - 16:30
- Modalitat
- Online - Synchronous
- Llengua
- English
- Durada
- 5 days
Registration for the 2023 Summer School is now closed.
The online ISGlobal Summer School in Global Health proposes a unique interdisciplinary teaching program, organized in six different modules from which participants can choose up to three.
Each offered module is designed to satisfy the needs of international students with a specific interest in epigenome-wide association studies, biomedical data science & machine learning, infectious diseases and their disruptive impact on society, health impact assessment, physical activity in research, and circadian disruption.
Students who attend a minimum of 80% of the online sessions of a Module will be awarded a Certificate of Participation. Attendance will be determined from Zoom participant reports.
Learning objectives
The Summer School is designed to empower postgraduate students, researchers, and young professionals to:
- Explore and acquire knowledge in current Global Health issues.
- Describe approaches, concepts and frameworks used in Global Health studies and interventions.
- Apply integrated knowledge to solve Global Health issues.
- Apply key methodologies used in Global Health to better design, conduct, analyse and interpret research studies.
- Expand participants' personal and professional network by e-meeting colleagues from diverse fields from around the world.
Summer 2023 Modules and Schedule
Modules in the same time slot are held in parallel. Therefore, participants may register for a maximum of three modules in total, one per time slot. All modules are based on synchronic and interactive online lessons.
Module 1. Introduction to epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) (CLOSED for registration)
Time Slot 1 · Teaching Language: English
- Coordinator: Juan Ramon González
- Other lecturers: Mariona Bustamante, Sofía Aguilar-Lacasaña, Laura Balagué
- Aim: To introduce basic concepts and guidelines to conduct epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) using DNA methylation data obtained from arrays.
- Learning Objectives: Upon successful completion of the module, participants should be able to conduct: (1) Pre-processing of DNA methylation data; (2) Epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS); (3) Meta-analysis of EWAS from different studies; (4) Annotation and functional interpretation of findings
- Additional requirements:
·Required: Intermediate knowledge in R environment.
·Recommended resources: Laptop or computer with >8Gb RAM - Time Slot 1: from 9 to 11 h CEST
- Teaching language: English
Module 2. Physical activity in research (CLOSED for registration)
Time Slot 1 · Teaching Language: English
- Coordinator: Joren Buekers
- Other lecturers: Sarah Koch
- Aim: Physical activity is a key determinant of health and the lack of physical activity is one of the most important risk factors associated with the development of chronic diseases. Still, more than 25% of adults (> 18 years) and more than 80% of adolescents (11-17 years) are not meeting the World Health Organisation guidelines to be considered sufficiently active. Physical activity is also a key component in many health-related studies. Nevertheless, the use of physical activity data in research requires a profound understanding of the concept of physical activity, and how it can be measured and analysed. Therefore, this module aims to improve the understanding of the key components of physical activity in research.
- Learning Objectives: (1) Understand the concept of physical activity and be familiar with its frameworks and terminology; (2) Understand the health benefits and risks of physical (in)activity across the life course; (3) Understand the challenges and opportunities of being physically active in the context of urbanisation and climate change; (4) Knowing different options for measuring and quantifying physical activity; (5) Becoming aware of study design and statistical considerations when working with physical activity in research; (6) Practical application of theoretical content learnt in own research ideas.
- Time Slot 1: from 9 to 11 h CEST
- Teaching language: English
Module 3. Introduction to Biomedical Data Science & Machine Learning
Time Slot 2 · Teaching Language: English
- Coordinator: Paula Petrone
- Other lecturers:
- Aim: The objective of this workshop is to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of the cutting-edge advancements, applications, benefits, and limitations of data science algorithms in the realm of health and biology. Additionally, the course will equip students with fundamental techniques essential for interpreting and analyzing biomedical data, such as data visualization and machine learning. By the end of the workshop, participants will have gained invaluable insights into the state-of-the-art methodologies and tools used in this field, empowering them to make informed decisions and contribute meaningfully to the intersection of data science, health, and biology.
- Learning Objectives: Upon successful completion of the module, participants should: (1) Develop a comprehensive understanding of machine learning, including its definition and range of applications; (2) Gain insights into the application of data science in the Life Sciences, including a clear understanding of its limitations and the potential opportunities it presents, (3) Acquire the necessary skills to approach novel datasets by formulating relevant questions and effectively implementing data analytics and visualization techniques.
- Additional requirements:
·Required: Basic programming is only required for the practical session - Time Slot 2: from 11.30 to 13.30 h CEST
- Teaching language: English
Module 4. Endemic and Pandemic Infectious Diseases and their Disruptive Impact in Society (CLOSED for registration)
Time Slot 2 · Teaching Language: English
- Coordinator: Quique Bassat
- Other lecturers: TBC
- Aim: To review and critically appraise the global health and societal impact of infectious diseases, using as examples infections that “have always been with us” (eg malaria, tuberculosis) and newer infections such as HIV, Ebola or SARS-CoV-2.
- Learning Objectives: Upon successful completion of the module, participants should be able to: (1) To understand the basic concepts of epidemiological transition and interplay between infections, mortality and development; (2) To become familiarized with the epidemiology, burden and basic characteristics of a few important IDs, namely: a) Malaria, b) Tuberculosis, c) HIV, d) Neglected tropical infections; e) Emerging infections with pandemic potential; (3) To understand diagnosis, management and control strategies for infectious diseases, both in endemic and epidemic contexts, or emergency situations; (4) To review the importance of preventive strategies (including vaccines) for the prevention of IDs, and their impact throughout the years; (5) To understand preparedness needs for future pandemics; (6) To understand key concepts around global health policy and the importance of translation
- Time Slot 2: from 11.30 to 13.30 h CEST
- Teaching language: English
Module 5. Health Impact Assessment: Principles and Practices (CLOSED for registration)
Time slot 3 · Teaching language: English
- Coordinator: Davide Rasella and Natalie Mueller
- Other lecturers:
- Aim: This module aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the main theoretical and methodological approaches for HIA, applied to different health topics and outcomes
- Learning objectives: Upon successful completion of the module, participants should be able to: (1) understand the underlying assumptions and principles of HIA; (2) identify strengths and limitations of each HIA method, and be able to select the most appropriate HIA technique, according to study objectives and conditions; (3) be able to develop basic HIA and correctly interpret their results, rather than focus on the mathematical derivation of the methods.
- Time slot 3: 14.30 to 16.30 h CEST
- Teaching langauge: English
Module 6. Circadian disruption, night shift work, artificial light at night and human health effects
Time Slot 3 · Teaching Language: English
- Coordinators: Barbara Harding and Anna Palomar
- Other lecturers:
- Aim: The course is addressed to epidemiologists, chronobiologists, biologists, medical doctors, risk assessment specialists, occupational health and safety, nutritionists, exposure assessors with interest on research on health effects of circadian disruption and night-shift work and on policies for the prevention of these effects. The course will focus on epidemiological studies but will also address key issues in exposure science, mechanisms, risk assessment and implementation.
- Learning objectives: By the end of the course participants should have an overall knowledge on the main health issues related to circadian disruption; be able to critically evaluate the main study designs used in epidemiology of circadian disruption; be able to critically evaluate key aspects in exposure assessment in human studies; know key pathways involved in the elevated health risks; and be able to discuss key prevention measures in the workplace.
- Time slot 3: 14.30 to 16.30 h CEST
- Teaching language: English
Application & Fees
Registration is closed.
To apply, candidates should complete the Summer School 2023 application form including:
- A current CV (English / .pdf format)
- A letter of motivation (English / .pdf format) explaining their interest in the specific modules for which they have registered and their relevance to their work and/or studies.
The revision of applications and notification of admissions will be carried out on a rolling basis. Once the maximum number of participants for a module has been reached, a waiting list will be opened.
Registration deadline: 16 July 2023
Fees: This activity is offered free of charge to all participants thanks to the support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the Spanish State Research Agency through the Program "Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence 2019-2023" (CEX 2018-000806-S).
The Summer School is supported by funding from our “Centro de Excelencia Severo Ochoa 2019-2023” Program, grant CEX2018-000806-S funded by MCIN/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033.
Participants in the 2023 International Summer School in Global Health are invited to attend the following Keynote Lectures
