Nyan Myint Recounts his Experience Working with IANPHI
Nyan Myint joined IANPHI as a Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow at the Rollins School of Public Health, which is a fellowship program at Emory University that brings accomplished mid-career professionals from designated developing countries to the United States for one year of non-degree graduate study and practical professional experience. He also worked with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an Emergency Management Fellow in the Division of Emergency Operations.
Before his fellowship, Nyan Myint worked more than 15 years in Myanmar’s public health sector, at the university level, with the World Health Organization, and in the country’s health ministry. He graduated with a medical degree and master's degree in public health from the University of Medicine 2, Yangon, Myanmar and also holds a PhD in tropical medicine from Mahidol University in Thailand.
During his time in the fellowship, Nyan Myint fostered professional relationships and gained international experiences with U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S. CDC), Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), China Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC) and Zambia’s National Public Health Institute (NPHI). Each experience helped him learn about different aspects of emergency management from an international perspective, including key technical skills such as public health emergency operation center (EOC) frameworks, international health regulations, risk assessments, rapid response team training, and conducting evaluations and exercises.
In collaboration with U.S. CDC and IANPHI, Nyan Myint was also able to develop a five-year strategic plan for Myanmar CDC and training centers that focus on communicable diseases surveillance and response, public health emergency management, laboratory, capacity building, training and research.
Upon completing his fellowship and returning to Myanmar, Nyan Myint was named the International Health Regulations (IHR) focal point for the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Health Security project and Public Health Emergency Program including EOC and Port Health Unit within Department of Public Health. Since returning home, Nyan has been able to conduct EOC training and POEs training by utilizing knowledge from his fellowship. The Myanmar EOC is activated for flood, vaccine-derived polio (VDPV) and influenza based on knowledge and skills Nyan gained from his Public Health Emergency Management training with the U.S. CDC.
Future activities will include GMS regional simulation exercises, MBDS risk assessment workshop, EOC upgrading and training in very near future and Draft AOP for GMS Health Security Project (Output2-Surveillance, response, PoEs and PHE).
IANPHI looks forwards to working with Nyan Myint in the years to come.
This article was published in IANPHI Insider #4 (November 2019).