Exchange report - teacher at KI
Home university: Tata Institute of Social Sciences
Study programme: Public Health Sciences (Master's)
Exchange programme: Linnaeus-Palme
Semester: Spring semester 2014/2015
Duration: 21
Name: Ingvild Odsbu
Email address: ingvild.odsbu@ki.se

Accommendation

IRO arranged a TISS vehicle to pick me up at the airport since I arrived in the middle of the night and it was my first time visiting Mumbai. Since I was coming to TISS at the same time as the semester started, the IRO was very busy preparing for the arrival of the international students. Therefore, the vehicle was arranged in the last minute. It is important to make sure that vehicle and guest house accommodation is in place before you leave. When I arrived at the airport, the vehicle was there to pick me up and it worked out fine. IRO also arranged for a vehicle to take me to the airport when I went home. I stayed at the TISS guest house which is located on campus. It was very convenient to avoid travelling to work in Mumbai. Although the WiFi was supposed to be functioning, this was not so. However, internet connection through cable worked fine. Also, the AC worked fine. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are available at the guest house which is very convenient. You can also buy food from the cantinees on campus. There are many small shops next to the campus where you can by water and snacks etc. There is also a very nice restaurant called “Oasis” across the street from the campus. Here you can get both Indian and Chinese food. In the Chembur area you can find a big shopping mall and several smaller shops.

Language and Culture

Everyone at TISS speaks English which makes it easy to communicate with the students and the faculty members. All teachings are done in English. The environment is very friendly and students are eager to talk to visiting faculty from abroad. In the class room settings the students as well as the teachers are very enthusiastic and they interact a lot with each other. People are very generous and helpful.

Leisure time

Since my visit was during the monsoon I stayed most of the time at campus due to heavy rain. Since the TISS campus has such a relaxing atmosphere and nice surroundings this was not a big problem. The last week the weather got better and I could do some sightseeing. IRO arranges sightseeing in Mumbai (full day trip) almost every Saturday for visiting faculty and students. The sightseeing was cancelled due to the rain, so I had to go on my own another day when the weather was better. I used taxi when I travelled around the city and I find them reliable. In one day I visited the area Bandra on the west coast (Mount Mary’s Church, the mosque Haji Ali Dargah and the Hindu temple Shree Siddhivinayak Ganapati), Marine Drive, Gateway of India, Taj Mahal Hotel, The Prince of Wales Museum and Victoria Terminus. The area around Gateway of India is very nice with many good restaurants. I was also invited home for dinner to several of the faculty members. It was very interesting to see how Indian people live.

Miscellaneous

My experience of the exchange program is positive. It has been a great inspiration to see how teaching is done at TISS. It has also been a great experience to get to know the Indian culture. When I arrived the semester just started and the faculty members were very busy. Maybe it would have been better if I arrived a week later. That would probably also be more convenient for the IRO at TISS. I also think it is important to plan the program at TISS in some detail ahead of the stay.

Other activities

I discussed research collaborations with the following faculty members:

  

Dr. Sivakami Muthusamy, Associate Professor and Chairperson at the School of Health Systems Studies

 

Dr. Nilesh Gawde, Associate Professor at the School of Health Systems Studies

 

Dr. Perumula Gopinath and Dr. Anita Rath, Associate Professors at the School of Development Studies

 

Since I study antibiotics and antibiotic resistance it was of interest to meet faculty members with an interest in this topic. Dr. Sivakami Muthusamy work on gender issues and we discussed possibilities to study antibiotic use and gender differences. Dr. Nilesh Gawde has done research on treatment of tuberculosis and multi-drug resistance in children and adults in Mumbai. We discussed the situation in India and how to collect data on drug use and prescriptions in India. Dr. Perumula Gopinath and Dr. Anita Rath have worked on topics related to pharmaceutical industry and health economics. We discussed drug policy and access to drugs in India. I will continue to discuss possible research collaborations with Dr. Sivakami Muthusamy and Dr. Nilesh Gawde in the future.

Preparation

I got good information about the Linnaeus-Palme exchange program from Anna Dahlerus, International Coordinator at KI and from the web page describing the exchange program (https://internwebben.ki.se/sv/lag-och-medelinkomstlander-linnaeus-palmeprogrammet). Prof. Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg, coordinator of KI`s collaboration with India, was responsible for the contact with International Relations Office (IRO) at TISS. It took approximately one week to obtain a visa since I do not have a Swedish passport. Before I went to TISS I was assigned a contact person at the School of Health Systems Studies. The contact person has been part of the same faculty exchange program and visited KI in May this year. Since I already had met her, the communication with her was very easy. We agreed upon part of the program before I went, and the rest of the program was planned when I arrived at TISS. I think it is a good idea to plan most of the program (which lectures to be held, which faculty members that could be of interest to meet etc.) before you leave.

Reflections

My experience of the exchange program is positive. It has been a great inspiration to see how teaching is done at TISS. It has also been a great experience to get to know the Indian culture. When I arrived the semester just started and the faculty members were very busy. Maybe it would have been better if I arrived a week later. That would probably also be more convenient for the IRO at TISS. I also think it is important to plan the program at TISS in some detail ahead of the stay.

Teaching

I conducted the following pedagogic activities during the visit to TISS: 

  • Lecture on “Antibiotic resistance in a public health perspective” at the School of Habitat Studies.

  • Lecture on “Use of prescription databases and self-reported drug use” at the School of Health Systems Studies.

  • Doctoral advisory committee – feedback to student on PhD proposal (Prakash Mishra – School-based programs for promoting gender equality: Parents as stakeholders)

  • I participated in classes on “Gender and health” and “Research methods” at the School of Health Systems Studies (group work and feedback to students).

  • I discussed master thesis projects with students at the School of Health System Studies.

I engaged mostly with students in the 2 years master’s programme at the School of Health Systems Studies. The first year students just started when I arrived and they were focused on choosing the topic for their master thesis. The students do not have any previous experience from research and needed input on how to narrow down the topic to find the research question and identify the knowledge gap. They also needed input on how to find relevant literature and how to write a master thesis. I also engaged with some PhD students and they were interested in the possibility to join online courses at KI. In general, all the students were very interested in information about KI and Sweden. During my lectures the students asked many questions and there seemed to be a lot of interest in rational use of drugs and antibiotic resistance.

Teaching hours

Average time per week spent on teaching was around 10 hours depending on the schedules of the courses. I also discussed possibilities for research collaborations with faculty members at different schools at TISS.