The series of activities exploring collaboration opportunities in the United States continued with a visit to the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, from November 29 to December 1, 2023. The UNUD Medical School team was received by Prof. Shailey Prasad, MD, MPH, Vice President for the Office of Academic Clinical Affairs, Executive Director and Carlson Chair, Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility (CGHSR), and Co-Director, Rothenberger Institute. During the visit to the Minnesota Medical School, the Dean of UNUD Medical School, Prof. Dr. dr. Komang Januartha Putra Pinatih, M.Kes, accompanied by Prof. dr. I Md Ady Wirawan, MPH, Ph.D, held discussions with researchers and clinicians interested in establishing collaboration with UNUD Medical School. Here is a summary of the meeting notes at the Minnesota Medical School:

1. Dr. Emmanuel Bonney – Researcher in Brain Neurodevelopment

   • Presented collaborative research opportunities in brain neurodevelopment and emphasized the importance of providing global context on this issue. He discussed several aspects related to Hubs on analytics, community engagement and education, neurobehavioral development, informatics, measurement and human phenotyping, neuroimaging, neuromodulation, TeleOutreach, and translational medicine.
   • For more information, visit: midb.umn.edu

2. Shannon M. Benson – Student Coordinator for Global Medical Education and Research (GMER) Program

   • Explored joint activities with student organizations related to GMER and the Global Health Student Advocacy Board (IG: @ghsab.umn).
   • Discussed student exchange opportunities (elective students). From UNUD Medical School, presented the IISMA funding opportunities and highlighted the importance of UMN Medical School support to enhance the chances of UNUD Medical School students in winning funding.
   • Invited UNUD Medical School students to participate in the Global Health Case Competition – a group competition consisting of 4 people (3 different majors) related to real-life global health cases and how to provide solutions. For more information, visit GHCC website z.umn.edu/GHCC

3. Keri Bergeson, MD, and Laura Pham, MD – Department of Family Medicine and Community Health and Family Medicine Residency Program

   • Explained the current layout and future expansion of Family Medicine Residency Programs.
   • Shared experiences in developing place-based rural residency programs.

4. Darlisha Williams, MPH – Research Manager

   • Discussed various research grant opportunities and how to manage research effectively.
   • National Institute of Health (NIH) research grant in global health settings, opportunities to submit joint research funding proposals.

5. Joshua Rhein, MD – Infectious Disease Researcher

   • Discussed various topics and research opportunities in global health and infectious diseases, particularly in fungal infections and central nervous system infections in resource-limited areas, and AIDS-related opportunistic infections.
   • Interest in participating in the senior research fellowship (UNISERF) at Udayana University, Bali.

6. Prof. Jeff Bender, DVM, MS – Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health

   • Discussed various research ideas related to agricultural safety and health research.
   • Various studies related to stress on farm and rural workers and how this idea can be developed in a global context.
   • Discussed other research ideas such as needlestick prevention on the farm and One Health research.

7. Robert Levy, MD – Board Certified Addiction Medicine, Assoc. Professor of UMN Medical School

   • Discussed various research ideas related to addiction medicine and research.
   • Joint research opportunities related to smoking cessation models in primary care.

8. Anna Pendleton, MA – Education Coordinator

   • Explained the Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility (CGHSR) education portfolio.
   • Global opportunities for an interdisciplinary approach in medical education.

9. Visited the Virtual Reality Studio for medical education and the MakerSpace Laboratory for the development of various ideas, designs, models, and medical prototypes using 3D printing.

The visit concluded with a campus tour of Minnesota Twin Cities and a city tour of Minneapolis, accompanied by CGHSR staff, Scottie Povolny.