Global child health - courses and overseas placements

RCPCH Global manages health system strengthening programmes in some of the world's most challenging countries (including Nepal, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Myanmar and Lebanon). As part of our commitment to training the global workforce, we support workforce learning including online and UK-based face-to-face, practical courses.
Last modified
2 August 2023

Share your expertise

We are always looking for health workers (Paediatricians, Obstetricians, Midwives Paediatric and Neonatal Nurses) with the right expertise to join our programmes both in an advisory capacity and as long-term mentors based overseas.

Learning with us

We offer a number of online and in-person courses and resources to prepare clinicians for work in low-resource settings.

In-person courses have been paused, but we hope to have them up and running again soon. When ready, we'll post on our course pages.

    Emergency Triage Assessment and Treatment Plus (ETAT+)

    ETAT+ is a comprehensive and proven intervention developed specifically for resource-poor settings. RCPCH is a leading provider of this course which is designed to help doctors and nurses develop skills in treating children in low-resource settings.

    The ETAT+ free online learning on RCPCH Learning, relaunched in early 2021, aims to support healthcare workers and students interested in emergency care in low-resource settings.

    We sometimes run a three-day in-person ETAT+ course - more details soon.

    More about ETAT+

    Emergency Triage Assessment and Treatment Plus (ETAT+) supports inpatient paediatric care quality improvement, and supports the the delivery of quality paediatric care for the poorest and most vulnerable children.

    This provides hands-on training to healthcare workers using evidence-based and up-to-date clinical protocols for identifying and managing the most common threats to newborn and child survival. It also:

    • reviews practice and monitors outcomes to improve quality
    • promotes teamwork and the integration of new skills and knowledge into everyday practice
    • produces a core of trainers and mentors to ensure sustainability and ongoing improvement.

    A study from Malawi demonstrated that the intervention package has the capacity to reduce inpatient mortality by 40% (Molyneaux et al Bulletin WHO 2006).

    Helping Babies Breathe (HBB)

    This course is paused.

    This is designed to develop new HBB Master Trainers, who will commit to train global healthcare professionals in resource-limited environments. It will provide the initial steps of neonatal resuscitation with an emphasis on The Golden Minute, the first minute after birth.

    Suitable for doctors, nurses, midwives and allied health professionals, the course aims to:

    • increase capacity for assessment and resuscitation of newborn infants at birth in order to reduce global mortality from perinatal hypoxia/ischaemia
    • provide participants with the skills necessary to teach neonatal resuscitation techniques to health care workers in resource-limited settings
    • ensure training in neonatal resuscitation is embedded in strategies to improve maternal, neonatal and child survival at local, regional and national levels.

    It is a wonderful course. The faculty were so passionate about their work. It was wonderful to meet so many of you with such great enthusiasm.

    2019 participant

    For information, contact Marcus on marcus.wootton@rcpch.ac.uk

    Child Health in Low-resource Settings (CHiLS)

    This course is paused.

    This practically-focused course equips clinicians to manage the most common childhood presentations in low-resource settings and gives insight into working overseas. It is for paediatric clinicians with an interest in global child health or who intend to work in low income countries. It includes:

    • case-based discussions on the most common conditions presenting to a rural district hospital in a developing country
    • broader issues of working in a different cultural and economic environment, for example, supplies, hospital management, attitudes and practices regarding illness and death
    • extensive pre-course reading materials.

    The course is taught by a combination of senior UK paediatricians with extensive overseas experience as well as paediatricians based in low income countries. Some input is also provided by paediatric trainees who have recently returned from working in a low resource setting.

    We've received some excellent feedback from delegates, with 100% stating they would recommend it. They felt the course improved their understanding of the role of an overseas volunteer, and motivated them in considering their potential contribution to global child health.