Global Health and Healthcare
Systems in India
Emergency Medicine, Community Health and One Health Across Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Gir National Park
Hyderabad, Ahmedabad & Gir, India
Healthcare
13 Days / 12 Nights
Sustainable Development Goals in Action
The Destination
Program Overview
A global health field school in India with Authentica is a two-week, faculty-led study-abroad program across Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Gir, where students engage first-hand with emergency medical services, community and primary health care, hospitals and medical education, and One Health and conservation medicine at Gir National Park.
India is one of the world's most complex and innovative laboratories for global health. It runs one of the world's largest emergency-response systems, serving hundreds of millions of people across multiple states, alongside a vast three-tier public health system and pioneering technology-enabled and community-based care. For students, that makes it a compelling place to understand how health care is designed and delivered at unprecedented scale.
Across Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Gir, and Rajkot, students engage directly with emergency medical services, primary and community health centres, hospitals and a government medical college, and community health workers. Through a distinctive One Health lens, they also explore conservation medicine among the endangered Asiatic lions of Gir National Park, examining the links between human, animal, and environmental health. Cultural immersion in Hyderabad's historic sites and Ahmedabad's heritage rounds out the field school.
Throughout, students see how cultural context shapes health behaviours and systems, and how technology, community participation, and public-private partnerships address health challenges at scale. They leave with practical, transferable skills in cross-cultural competency, community health assessment, and global health leadership.
Ideal for students in public health, medicine, nursing, and the health sciences.
What You'll Do
Key Program Elements
Emergency Medical Services and Healthcare Innovation
- Learn from a major emergency medical services organization running one of the world's largest emergency-response systems.
- Explore public-private partnerships in emergency health care.
- See technology-enabled and telemedicine-driven community health programs.
- Join an emergency-response ride-along to see the system in action.
Primary Health Care and Community Health Systems
- Visit primary and community health centres across India's three-tier system.
- Engage with community health workers on prevention and health promotion.
- Visit hospitals and a government medical college to see medical education and public care.
- Examine how the system reaches rural and under-served populations.
One Health and Conservation Medicine
- Explore the links between human, animal, and environmental health.
- Visit a wildlife hospital and rescue-and-rehabilitation centre at a national park.
- Learn conservation medicine through the lens of the endangered Asiatic lion.
- Use participatory rural appraisal tools alongside forest-community health workers.
Impact
UN Sustainable Development Goals in Action for this Program
SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being
- Provides direct engagement with India's healthcare systems, emergency medical services, and community health programs.
- Builds understanding of universal health coverage and scalable, evidence-based interventions.
SDG 4: Quality Education
- Engages with a government medical college and medical-education institutions.
- Examines how education builds the health workforce and drives quality improvement.
SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
- Explores efforts toward universal health coverage and equitable access.
- Studies community health-worker programs and rural-urban health gaps.
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
- Visits urban healthcare facilities and emergency-response networks.
- Examines how fast-growing cities manage population health challenges.
SDG 15: Life on Land
- Explores conservation medicine and wildlife health at a national park.
- Connects environmental health to human wellbeing through One Health.
Beyond the Classroom
Program Highlights
What You'll Take Home
Learning Outcomes
Global Health Systems Understanding
Participants gain first-hand insight into how health care is structured, funded, and delivered at scale in a complex, high-population setting.
Community and Population Health Assessment
Engaging with community health workers and primary care builds the ability to assess population health needs and design responses.
One Health and Conservation Medicine
The Gir component connects human, animal, and environmental health into a single, systems-level view of wellbeing.
Cross-Cultural Competency and Global Health Leadership
Immersion in India's cultural and health contexts builds culturally responsive practice and leadership.
Day by Day
Sample Itinerary
Specific organizations visited are curated based on the faculty's learning objectives and may vary by cohort. The categories below reflect the types of engagements included in this program.
Arrival in Hyderabad
Arrive in Hyderabad and transfer to the hotel for check-in.
Orientation and Emergency Health Care
An orientation and safety briefing, a visit to a community health hospital for an introduction and tour, and a welcome dinner.
Meals: B, DPrimary Health Care in the Field
A full-day visit to a rural primary health centre, with an evening guided visit to the Hussain Sagar Buddha Statue.
Meals: B, LHyderabad Heritage
A morning at Birla Mandir and the medieval Golconda Fort, and an afternoon at the Shilparamam arts and crafts village.
Meals: BHyderabad to Ahmedabad
A final primary-health-centre visit before an in-program domestic flight to Ahmedabad.
Meals: B, LEmergency Medical Services
A full day with a major emergency medical services organization, including a campus visit and an emergency-response ride-along.
Meals: BAhmedabad Heritage Walk
A guided heritage walk through Ahmedabad's UNESCO-listed old city and a visit to the Adalaj Step Wells.
Meals: BAhmedabad to Gir
A transfer to Gir, gateway to the national park and its Asiatic lions.
Meals: B, LOne Health at Gir
A morning lion safari in Gir National Park and an afternoon visit to a wildlife hospital and rescue-and-rehabilitation centre.
Meals: BConservation Medicine
A return to the wildlife hospital and a second lion safari, deepening the One Health and conservation-medicine focus.
Meals: BCommunity Health and Transfer to Rajkot
A morning orientation to participatory rural appraisal tools and a forest transect walk with a primary health centre and community health workers, before beginning the transfer toward Ahmedabad with an overnight in Rajkot.
Meals: B, LRajkot to Ahmedabad
Continue to Ahmedabad, with an afternoon visit to a major public hospital and a government medical college.
Meals: BDeparture
Free time for a group project before the group transfer to the airport.
Meals: BAt a Glance
Program Snapshot
Meals Included
Sustainability
On-Ground Support
Insurance
Investment
Pricing & Inclusions
Program Cost
Pricing Available on Request
Every program is scoped to the faculty's objectives and cohort size; contact us for a customized quote.
Request a customized quote*Costs may vary depending on group size, program inclusions, number of program days, and other factors. Please contact us for a customized quote.
What's Included
- Accommodation on a bed and breakfast basis (12 nights)
- Air-conditioned coach for visits, immersions, and transfers
- In-program domestic flight (Hyderabad to Ahmedabad)
- Airport transfers on arrival and departure
- 12 Breakfasts, 4 Lunches and 1 Dinner
- Assistance arranging healthcare and organization visits
- Guided cultural immersions with English-speaking experts
- Gir National Park safaris and entries
- 24x7 Authentica Program Manager support
- A program-specific risk-management plan
- Carbon offset for a carbon-neutral program
- All applicable taxes
Good to Know
FAQs About the Program
1. What is a global health field school in India?
A global health field school in India is a short-term, faculty-led study-abroad program in which students explore India's healthcare systems first-hand. Over about two weeks across Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Gir, participants engage with emergency medical services, community and primary health care, hospitals and medical education, and One Health and conservation medicine, alongside cultural immersion — earning real insight into how health care is delivered at scale.
2. Who is this global health program for, and what are the eligibility requirements?
The program suits undergraduate and graduate students in public health, medicine, nursing, and the health sciences, as well as faculty leading a cohort. No clinical licensure is required — the field school is observational and immersive, built around learning objectives rather than hands-on patient care.
3. What will students do and learn on this global health immersion?
Students learn from a major emergency medical services organization, community and primary health centres, hospitals and a government medical college, and a wildlife hospital and conservation programme at Gir National Park. They study India's three-tier health system, community health-worker networks, technology-enabled and telemedicine models, and the One Health links between human, animal, and environmental health.
4. What vaccinations and health precautions are recommended for India?
Because this is a health-focused program in India, participants should consult a travel-health clinic well in advance. Commonly recommended precautions include routine vaccinations plus hepatitis A and typhoid, careful food and water practices, and mosquito-bite prevention; some travellers also consider hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, or rabies depending on the itinerary. Always confirm current recommendations with a qualified travel-medicine professional.
5. Is the program safe, and what support is provided?
Yes. A dedicated Authentica Program Manager accompanies the group 24x7 from orientation to departure, the program opens with an orientation and safety briefing, and every itinerary is backed by a program-specific risk-management plan. Authentica also carries USD 5M Commercial General Liability and USD 1M Errors and Omissions insurance.
6. Do I need a visa to join a global health program in India?
Yes — most travellers need a visa or e-visa to enter India, and requirements depend on your nationality. Apply for the appropriate India visa well ahead of departure and confirm the current rules with the relevant authority.
7. Is this a sustainable, carbon-neutral program?
Yes — this is a sustainable, carbon-neutral program, and Authentica is a sustainable program provider. Authentica offsets approximately three metric tons of CO2 per participant through its Net Zero partner and designs every field school around the UN Sustainable Development Goals — here, good health and well-being, reduced inequalities, sustainable cities, and life on land. As a sustainable organization, Authentica pairs responsible travel with a One Health and conservation-medicine focus at Gir National Park that directly links human health to environmental sustainability.
8. What are the benefits of a global health field school in India?
It gives students an unmatched, first-hand view of health care delivered at scale — from one of the world's largest emergency-response systems to community health and One Health — plus skills in cross-cultural competency, community health assessment, and global health leadership, and a distinctive experience for graduate-school and career applications.
Interested in a Similar Program?
Contact us at info@authentica.com to design a faculty-led immersion around your objectives.