One Health: Ecosystems, Humans and Animals (MSc)

After 20 odd years in clinical veterinary practice, I was looking for a change in direction, something that would bring more meaning to my life and address a much needed shift in the Work: Life balance. The One Health concept had drawn my attention over the previous year and when I saw the inaugural MSc One Health degree offered jointly by the prestigious London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) I took the plunge.

The course covered a wide range of disciplines beyond emerging infectious diseases, from epidemiology to anthropology, and has been delivered by those at the top of their game. The international flavour of my fellow students added value to group discussions and truly reflected the position of both the School and RVC in global academia and research.

To cover all aspects of One Health, the course content was packed, but one soon appreciated that the learning in this field will never stop. Beyond the course lectures, there was always something else to attend, be it the Global Health lecture series, guest invitations to Chatham House debates or lunch time shows of archived movies.

This year has been a life changing experience and it occupies a large part of my “Fond Memories” disc space.