Om enheten
Our North-South perspective is an important characteristic of our research and teaching. We approach public health issues locally and nationally in Sweden, as well internationally through collaborative projects in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Despite the different contexts, the epidemiological methods that we teach and use are universal, and all of our projects - no matter the geographical location - are grouped under three areas: aetiological, social and evaluative epidemiology.
Staff members divide their time between research, teaching and/or clinical work, with most researchers involved in projects in collaboration with developing countries as well as within Sweden. Generally our research teams include a mix of competencies, which is reflected in the different research methodologies employed, and our administrative assistants have key roles in Swedish as well as in bilateral projects. Working across cultures and disciplines is therefore a learning process for all involved.
Examples of current research areas include reproductive health, nutrition, child growth, the evaluation of health interventions and the emerging epidemic of non-communicable diseases in transitional societies. Studies of HIV/AIDS in Africa, sexual and reproductive health in Africa and Latin America and of community interventions in northern Sweden have all been performed using the application of epidemiology, qualitative methods and health economics, for example.
