The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the Organization of American States (OAS) are launching a graduate course on "Management of Market Surveillance Systems on Consumer Product Safety" with emphasis on surveillance systems in the health sector. The course will run from 22 April to 28 June, in collaboration with Pompeu Fabra University of Barcelona (UPF).
The course, which is open for enrollment until 7 April, aims at strengthening the technical capabilities of institutions of the Americas in charge of consumer product regulation, and their impact on health.
The course has space for 30 participants from personnel in the Ministries of Health and health sector who are directly responsible for public policies, regulation, market monitoring, and product safety. Applicants should be university-educated professionals with at least a Bachelors degree to be able to apply for the graduate degree offered by UPF. However, other candidates without university degrees can also attend the program, based on their academic merits or work history, and will receive a certificate of approval from the advisors of the course.
The training course will last seven weeks and will be in two parts. The first part is virtual and each student will have a workload of 12 hours per week. The second part is a mandatory in-person one-week workshop in Washington, D.C., U.S.A.
European and North American product safety monitoring systems will be examined and contrasted with the realities and needs of the countries in the Region. Work will be also done on developing a comparative study of surveillance systems and their relation to the enforcement of product safety laws in the Americas.
The training will be given in Spanish although study materials will also be available in English and Portuguese. At the workshop, simultaneous interpretation in English will be provided. Registration and enrollment in the course are free. However, the participants or institutions to which they belong will need to cover the costs of transportation and lodging for the five-day workshop in Washington, D.C.
This is the third time that the graduate program has been offered. It is implemented through the Consumer Safety and Health Network (CSHN), which was established as a result of the commitment of the American States to protect consumer rights and promote consumer safety. The Technical Secretariat of the CSHN has been under the responsibility of the OAS and PAHO.
If you are interested in signing up for the course, send an e-mail before 7 April to: gonzalezai@paho.org (also please cc: ayichang@oas.org and MAcle@oas.org).
