One (vis-à-vis Planetary, Eco) health: A landscape analysis of educational programs

Abstract

To sustain the health of humans, animals, and their shared environment, global advocacy in policy, funding, education, and training in multi-actor, multi-domain, and multi-level collaboration is required. Emerging interdisciplinary concepts such as One Health, Planetary Health, and Eco-Health (OH/PH/EH) have flagged opportunities to promote health across species; however, there is a lack of understanding about the extent and type of available education and training of professionals working in these disciplines. Therefore, this review aims to identify the ongoing efforts in the pedagogy of imparting OH/PH/EH education across the globe. We conducted a systematic Google database search between August and October 2021. The specific course types covered in this review were limited to degree programs and short courses. All courses using the terms "One Health," "Planetary Health," and "Eco health" were included. A descriptive analysis was conducted to understand the distribution of these courses based on the course type, geographic region, mode of delivery, duration, and course fees. A total of 61 courses delivered across the globe were identified in this review. Among these courses, there were three doctoral degrees, 31 master's degrees, two bachelor's degrees, and 25 short courses documented. The majority of the courses were related to OH (n = 43), followed by PH (n = 10), and EH (n = 08). Overall, there are still a limited number of courses or programs offered on OH/PH/EH, especially for PH and EH. There was geographic inequity as the reviewed courses were centered around the European region. There were also differences in the mode of delivery, as there was a preference for online delivery of courses, and many of them were diploma or certificate courses. Acknowledging the essence of these frameworks in tackling real-world issues, OH/PH/EH education should be made more available in higher education to help mould OH/PH/EH-oriented professionals.

Keywords: course; eco‐health; education; one health; planetary health.

FIGURE 1

The year of onset of the OH/PH/EH educational courses, irrespective of their type. Footnote: Seven courses have no information regarding the year of launch

FIGURE 2

Distribution of OH, PH, EH courses as per the country, Software‐Open source software, QGIS, Source of shape file‐https://international.ipums.org/international/gis.shtml

FIGURE 3

Mode of OH/PH/EH course delivery

FIGURE 4

OH/PH/EH courses by their duration

FIGURE 5

OH/PH/EH course fees (standardized to USD)