GSPH Homecoming Day, August 24, 2024

The 6th annual Homecoming Day was held on Saturday, August 24 in Room 3210 on the 2nd floor of the St. Luke's Center for Clinical Academia. It is an annual event held to promote interaction among alumni, current students and faculty members. The event began with opening remarks by Dean Nobuo Nishi, followed by an ice-breaker game of message telling between teams. The tension in the participants was quickly released by the funny way in which short sentences were transformed during the game. Then the Faculty Talk -My Career Path- was held. Professor Mabubur Rahman introduced his experiences in education and research at various universities and research institutes in Bangladesh, Japan, and the U.S. He concluded his talk by saying, “I have been able to work extensively at various research institutes by flexibly choosing themes according to the situation, rather than sticking to one research theme. I hope that students will also be flexible in their research themes and seize opportunities.” After his presentation, Professor Junko Yasuoka shared her experiences of working for WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), WHO (World Health Organization), and other organizations in various countries in Asia, Africa, and Europe, with photos. She concluded with the words, “Breakthroughs never happen without meeting people.” Following this, the annual self-introduction session was held. All alumni, current students, and faculty members who participated in the session chose one of the letters S, L, I, or U to create a keyword associated with themselves, and gave a presentation on the theme of that word. The presentations, which included a wide variety of topics such as work, research, hobbies, and special skills, were very enjoyable and created a friendly atmosphere in the place.

In the second half, three alumni gave talks on their post-MPH program careers. First, Ms. Noriko Tomabechi, a graduate of the 2020 MPH program who works as a nurse for the Japanese Red Cross Society, spoke about her experience as a chief coordinator for the response to the COVID-19 pandemic on board the Diamond Princess in February 2020, which attracted attention from Japan and abroad during her studies at the university. She also shared her experiences of being dispatched to Bangladesh for a healthcare support project for displaced people, and as a coordinator for a complex humanitarian crisis support project in the 2023 earthquake in Afghanistan. She concluded her talk by saying, “Nothing changed about my professional area before and after joining GSPH. My journey to be a global health professional is still ongoing.” Second, Ms. Haruna Matsui, graduate of the 2021 MPH program, who changed her career from a public health nurse to a global consulting firm after the program, introduced how her studies at the MPH are being utilized in her current job. Third, Mr. Yuya Miyazawa, from the AY 2023 MPH program, who currently works for a food company, talked about how his life philosophy changed after studying at the MPH program. He moved to a better place to raise his children to spend better time with his family, and he hopes to be in a policy position in the future.

Finally, a quiz game was held, in which each faculty gave a quiz related to his /her hobbies and special skills. The quiz gave the participants a glimpse into a side of the faculty that they had never seen before. After a fun and exciting time, the participants had time for free talk to further deepen their relationship with each other. This time, a kid's corner was set up so that participants with children could easily attend the event together, and the children had a great time as well. The entire event was moderated by Professors Sachiko Ohde and Stuart Gilmour, and their witty banter kept everyone laughing throughout the event.
Thank you very much to everyone who attended.

GSPH Homecoming Day, August 5, 2023

The 5th Homecoming Day was held at Hinohara Hall on Saturday, August 5. Homecoming Day is an annual event held to deepen exchanges between alumni, current students from diverse backgrounds, and faculty members. The event began with an address by Professor Nobuo Nishi, newly appointed Dean of the Graduate School this year, followed by a report on recent updates of the school, internship experience reports and presenting research at overseas workshops by current students. This was followed by a self-introduction session, which was also held last year. Participants chose one of the initials of the school name (S, L, P, or H) and created a keyword associated with themselves. The presentations with those keywords included a variety of topics such as work, research, hobbies, and special skills, were very entertaining and created a friendly atmosphere in the hall.

In the second half, six alumni (Dr. Kazuhiro Okada, Dr. Aliza KC Bhandari, Dr. Tomohiro Ochi, Dr. Bibha Dhungel, Mr. Shota Mashimo, and Ms. Noriko Matsushita) gave presentations on their careers after graduation. The alumni, who now work in hospitals, academic institutions and medical-related companies, shared how they have been able to translate the questions they find in their daily work into research and present their findings in papers and at academic conferences, and how they have taken a leadership role in clinical research at their workplaces. PhD graduates also spoke about how they has pursued a career as a university faculty member and how their research skills have also been useful in community service activities.

After all the presentations were over, all the participants took a group photo at the venue and then went to a social event which was filled with the joy of seeing faculty members and old friends again after a long time.

Thank you very much for your cooperation. We are planning another event in August next year, so please join us.

GSPH Homecoming Day, August 21, 2022

On August 21, the 4th Homecoming Day of the Graduate School of Public Health was held at Hinohara Hall in the St. Luke's Center for Clinical Academia. Although the 2020 and 2021 homecoming events were held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's event was held in-person with adequate infection control measures for the first time in three years.

This year's Homecoming Day was designed for socializing and featured two main sessions, entitled St. Luke's GSPH Summer Salon at the Graduate School of Public Health.

1. Self-introduction presentations
In order to make it fun for alumni and students of different grades to get to know each other, we asked them to make self-introduction cards in advance using one of the letters of G, S, P, or H (Graduate School of Public Health). The cards were made into booklets and distributed to all participants. Eight students and alumni gave presentations on stage, offering interesting topics such as their research, favorite things, future dreams, and the NGO they organize. In addition, students who participated in the activities of a non-profit organization run by Associate Professor Sato that supports children with cancer and their families gave a presentation on their experiences.

2. Talks by alumni on their career path
Three alumni, Ms. Haruka Maeda, Mr. Kei Hosaka, and Mr. Shotaro Asano, who are on unique career paths after completing the program, gave lectures on their current jobs. Ms. Maeda, who is currently working as a researcher at Nagasaki University, talked about her research on the efficacy and economic evaluation of COVID-19 vaccines. Mr. Hosaka, who works for an IT company, talked about various examples of applications that are widely used in the health and medical fields. Mr. Asano, who runs a company developing digital therapeutics, talked about his current work and how the knowledge and experience he gained in GSPH are being utilized in his current work.

The audience was very interested in the variety of presentations and asked many questions. After the session, there was time for free talk, during which participants were happy to see each other again after a long absence and exchanged business cards with alumni they had met for the first time. We hope that opportunities such as this one will encourage alumni and students with different professions, nationalities, interests, and hobbies to get to know each other, and that this will lead to new research, projects, and other innovations in the future.

Thank you very much for your cooperation.

GSPH Homecoming Day, July 11, 2021

The 2021 Homecoming Day was held on July 11. This year, the event was held online as last year in order to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus infection. 19 graduates and 14 current students participated and shared the latest information with us.

At the Homecoming Day event, we introduced how the school responded to COVID-19 and new teaching method as well as some research project of our faculty.
Our alumni, Su Lan Yang and Peter Owusu Afriyie gave presentations on their current research and future plans after completion of their studies. Extracurricular activities of the Educational Support Grant were also introduced and Capstone Project themes presented until mow were shared.

Although the event was held online, we were able to have a lively and productive exchange of information from the participants.
Thank you very much for your cooperation.

GSPH Homecoming Day, August 22, 2020

The 2020 Homecoming Day was held on August 22. This event was originally scheduled on the same day as the presentation of the Capstone Project Protocol of current students. In order to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, both events were held separately online. Fourteen graduates and 11 current students participated in this event, including three graduates from overseas.

The theme of this event was "The role of MPH holders during the COVID-19 pandemic" and AY 2017 graduates, Shahta Zarab Salehin and Miyuki Uchiyama gave presentations on this theme. Under the circumstances of the new coronavirus, there was a lively exchange of information from both graduates and current students.
Thank you very much for your participation and cooperation.

GSPH Homecoming Day, July 14, 2019

GSPH Homecoming Day was held on July 14, Sun. It was the first Homecoming Day since the Graduate School of Public Health was established in 2017.
The alumni who joined the event gave a speech about their campus memories at St. Luke’s, their current work, and a message to the current GSPH students. Some of the current students reported their internship experience, followed by introductions to the updated MPH program and the new DrPH program, which started from April 2019.
Other alumni who could not come also sent videos, photos, and messages to the event. Thank you very much!
Before the Homecoming Day, 24 final year students presented their Capstone Project Protocol plan. Participants including the alumni and the current students actively exchanged questions and ideas.