Institute for Tropical Medicine and International Health Berlin
The Institute for Tropical Medicine and International Health Berlin is an institute of the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and deals with the diagnosis and treatment of tropical diseases, travel medicine advice and vaccinations as well as tropical medicine research and teaching.
history
The institute emerged from the Royal Prussian Schutzblattern Vaccination Institute , which was founded in 1802 . Renamed the Institute for Tropical Medicine in 1995 , the institute today comprises a tropical medical outpatient clinic, an HIV counseling center, a travel medical outpatient clinic with branch offices in Berlin, a laboratory with a parasitological focus as well as research and teaching areas. The institute belonged to the Berlin company for central health tasks until 2011 and has been a regular institute of the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin since 2012 .
Patient care
In the tropical medical outpatient clinic, returnee examinations, examinations of suitability for use in the tropics (G 35) and the diagnosis of parasitic, bacterial and viral infectious diseases are carried out. The institute's laboratory is able to detect numerous tropical pathogens.
The most common health problems complained about after traveling abroad include diarrhea and indigestion, fever and skin changes.
Travel medical advice and vaccinations
Specialized doctors advise on medical questions before the trip, including current recommendations on malaria prophylaxis and, if necessary, carry out the necessary vaccinations. This also includes the yellow fever vaccination (official yellow fever vaccination center).
research
The focus of the scientific work is on malaria , HIV / AIDS in Africa and public health in developing countries. Field studies will be carried out (2017) with partners in Ghana, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, India and Sri Lanka. The research activities are funded primarily by the BMBF , DFG , Hector Foundation and Sonnenfeld Foundation.
The working group with a focus on prevention and therapy of HIV / AIDS has existed since 1999. The research focuses on the analysis of factors influencing vertical HIV transmission, therapy response, therapy adherence and the development of resistance under the conditions of resource-poor regions in Africa. Clinic partnerships to improve patient care with regard to HIV / AIDS and co-infections are also carried out within the framework of the working group.
The Malaria and Infection Epidemiology Working Group conducts clinical-epidemiological studies with cooperation partners in Africa and Asia . The focus is on the genetic influence on susceptibility and manifestation to infection, therapy studies and resistance markers. Further areas of work include the epidemiology of intestinal parasites, the spread and import of resistant bacteria, type 2 diabetes in Africans and disease patterns in migrants and refugees.
Clinic partnerships within the framework of the ESTHER initiative exist with the University Teaching Hospital of Butare, Rwanda, and the Holy Family Virika Hospital in Fort Portal, Uganda.
Teaching
The Master’s degree in International Health at Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin has been carried out at the Institute for Tropical Medicine in Berlin since 1999. The course is integrated into the European "tropEd network for training and further education in international health". The students prepare for managerial tasks in the field of international public health. The language of instruction is English. The degree program ends with the “Master of Science” (MSc) in “International Health”.
Other courses include the diploma course "Tropical Medicine and Public Health" and the elective module "Tropical Medicine".
Directors
- 1982-2006 Ulrich Bienzle
- 2006–2019 Gundel Harms-Zwingenberger
- since 2019 Frank Mockenhaupt (acting)
Web links
Coordinates: 52 ° 31 '9.3 " N , 13 ° 16'30.8" E