On April 16, medical students and faculty from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA joined Rwandan medical and pharmacy students in Butare to learn more about the community health projects being done by the Rwanda Village Concept Project (RVCP). Since 2006, Jefferson medical students have partnered with Rwandan medical students in an international student education exchange program aimed at understanding the intersection of medicine, service, social justice, and public health. Through this partnership, Jefferson has hosted 23 Rwandan medical students in Philadelphia and the RVCP has hosted more than 75 

Jefferson health professional students in Rwanda.Jefferson health professional students in Rwanda.Jefferson students participate in clinical clerkships at the National University of Rwanda’s Medical School, working in the field with the people of Rugerego and Akarambi.  The Rwandan students rotate through clinical instruction in family medicine and pediatrics. They also received classroom training through the “College within The College” (CwiC) track at JMC, allowing them access to population health courses as medical college students. 

efferson Rwanda Exchange Program

Under  the partnership between Rwanda Village Concept Project from the Faculty of  Medicine at the National University of Rwanda and JEFF HEALTH (Helping East Africa Link To Health) and the Thomas Jefferson University from USA.

The exchange program is between the medical  students from the University of Rwanda, College of Medicine members of RVCP and medical students from Thomas Jefferson University members of Jeff  HEALTH.

The general purpose of the exchange program  is for the participants to learn experience, the health care practice, health education and research done in Rwanda and the United States as well as learn  from the culture, history and people in those  countries.

The objectives of the exchange programs in the USA  are:

1.  Learn  approach to Pediatric care, education and research in a developed  country
2.  Learn  approach to Family and Community Medicine care, education and research in a  developed country
3.  Learn  methods of integrating primary care and public  health
4.  Understand how to offer a range of clinical services to meet community  needs
5.  Promote  health education through clinical encounters
6.  Understand management of chronic  disease
7.  Learn  methods to promote community linkages with medical  institutions.