From Surrey to Manipal: Learning, collaboration and innovation in global health
Dr Richard Green, a Surrey Future Fellow, was one of several applicants from the University to be accepted onto a new pilot international faculty placement scheme with Manipal Academy of Higher Education in Manipal, India. Here, he tells us about his experience.
"My time in Manipal provided a fantastic opportunity to build relationships, explore shared research priorities, and experience academic life in a very different context."
I was delighted to be accepted onto the placement scheme with Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE). The initiative aims to strengthen international research collaboration and academic exchange, and my time in Manipal provided a fantastic opportunity to build relationships, explore shared research priorities, and experience academic life in a very different context.
During my placement, I was based primarily within MAHE’s Department of Palliative Care. I spent time meeting with clinicians, researchers, and educators to learn more about their work and to explore future research opportunities. I was particularly struck by MAHE’s innovative and pragmatic approach to capacity building for palliative care and to strengthening the evidence base in a field that remains under-resourced in many parts of India. My visit was well timed to coincide with the opening of their new hospice in 2025, a major milestone that significantly advances hospice provision in the region and in a country where such facilities remain limited.
A particularly exciting outcome of these discussions has been my involvement in early work on developing a customised large language model to support the completion and documentation of ‘living wills’. This work sits within a broader programme of advance care planning development in India, made increasingly feasible by recent legal changes that have clarified and simplified these processes.
Alongside this, I worked with colleagues in MAHE’s Kasturba Medical College developing their newly established Department of AI in Healthcare. A desk-based review of the literature was undertaken to inform suggestions for a MAHE-specific roadmap for AI in healthcare, with particular emphasis on the development of electronic health record infrastructure as a foundation for future innovation, reported on at a launch event for the new Department in December.
I also had the pleasure of working with colleagues and postgraduate researchers to explore ideas for future research in geriatrics and older people’s care in the Indian context. These discussions focused especially on supporting the development of geriatrics training and strengthening evidence in an area of rapidly growing need.
On a more personal note, the experience was immensely rewarding. It was very hot, the food was outstanding, and the warmth and good humour of MAHE staff made the experience both welcoming and memorable. Overall, the placement was not only professionally fulfilling but also a valuable opportunity for personal growth, and I returned with new collaborations, fresh perspectives, and a much higher tolerance for spicy breakfasts.
