OVERVIEW OF DEPARTMENT
The Department of Health Sciences (DHS) offers a number of programmes that caters for the country’s growing need for allied health professionals. Over the years, DHS has established itself as an innovative, research-focused and quality-oriented department as evidenced by quality healthcare training, research and promotion of active community engagement in our country. DHS vision is to transform health care education through innovative approaches linked to advanced teaching, learning, research and knowledge exchange with a view to producing highly qualified, ethical and dedicated health professionals. Since its inception, DHS has transformed itself and grown with the addition of new programmes including postgraduate courses which are responsive to societal needs, revision of existing programmes based on external examiners assessment and strengthening its research agenda in collaboration with overseas prestigious universities..
From a research perspective, DHS has performed exceptionally well in terms of research output. In the past 10 years, DHS has graduated 25 MPhil/PhD students, secured 17 research grants, and published up to 700 scientific papers in internationally recognised journals, especially those with high impact factor. At its core, DHS also understands the significance of community outreach and nurturing relationships with the community to help communities function better. In this context, over the years, DHS students and staffs have repeatedly engaged in the community through our numerous outreach programmes. We have established sustainable bonds with key stakeholders (governmental & non-governmental) in different areas within the community which has strengthened the quality of our education. By laying emphasis on community outreach and community-based learning, we have inculcated in our students strong ethical values and varied practice skills. There are ongoing collaboration with many different non-governmental organisations/parties, for instance, the Global Rainbow Foundation and Joie de Vivre Universelle. The Department of Health Sciences, in its endeavour to maintain the quality of healthcare practice, has developed ties with local health professionals’ associations, for instance, the Occupational Therapists’ Association Mauritius, the Mauritius Physiotherapists’ Association and most recently, the Social Security Medical Practitioners Union for provision of continuous professional development seminars.
