Summer Opportunities

Harvard Center for Primary Care

Harvard Center for Primary Care

Program type: International, Research

Format: Hybrid: A combination of virtual and in-person work, primarily based in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Location: Hanoi, Vietnam

Internship Details

  • Intern Positions Available: 2
  • Format: Hybrid: A combination of virtual and in-person work, primarily based in Hanoi, Vietnam.
  • Work Environment Details:
    • Interns will work at the Hanoi office, an open-plan space conducive to collaboration.
    • Regular engagement with provincial partners through field visits, pending local government approvals.
    • Hybrid components will include remote meetings with Boston and Philippines-based team members.

Organization Description

This collaboration between the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care and the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital seeks to strengthen global primary health care systems through research, education, advocacy, and implementation science.

The team employs a people-centered approach, partnering with governments, community organizations, NGOs, private sector entities, and individuals with lived healthcare experience to create equitable and sustainable health systems worldwide.

Internship Project Description

Interns will be placed in one of the following projects, with all involving community engagement and exposure to healthcare delivery:

  1. STITCH (Strengthening Care for Hepatitis through Community Engagement):
    • Focus: Refining and scaling a people-centered model of hepatitis care for nationwide implementation in Vietnam by 2026.
    • Potential Intern Tasks:
      • Collaborate with the Yellow Warriors or Vietnam Women’s Union to develop hepatitis B/C community education programs.
      • Assist in cleaning, analyzing, and reporting patient experience, health outcomes, and cost data.
      • Draft evidence-based policy briefs for scaling initiatives.
  2. IPC (Infection Prevention and Control):
    • Focus: Strengthening infection control in 20 Vietnamese hospitals by establishing a Community of Practice (CoP).
    • Potential Intern Tasks:
      • Develop training materials and protocols to support provincial hospital teams.
      • Manage and disseminate CoP data and knowledge products.
      • Contribute to data synthesis and manuscript preparation on intervention outcomes.
  3. Women’s Health through Primary Care (To Be Confirmed):
    • Focus: Designing a women-centered care model for an under-addressed health condition (e.g., cervical cancer, hypothyroidism).
    • Potential Intern Tasks:
      • Conduct literature reviews to identify best practices in women’s health service delivery.
      • Support health facility assessments and patient journey mapping for model co-design.
      • Assist with co-design workshops and stakeholder engagement.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Gain a deep understanding of Primary Health Care approaches to health systems strengthening.
  2. Learn to apply implementation science for healthcare service improvement.
  3. Develop strategies for meaningful community engagement in healthcare design and delivery.

Qualifications

Preferred Skills and Interests:

  • Fluency or working proficiency in Vietnamese (highly desirable).
  • Ability to self-reflect on one’s identity and positionality when collaborating in diverse cultural contexts.
  • Flexibility, adaptability, and openness to learning by doing.
  • Strong research and analytical skills.
  • Interest in or experience with primary health care, community engagement, or health equity.

Work Environment

Interns will collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, attend in-person and virtual meetings, and interact directly with local stakeholders. Field visits to provincial project sites may be included, subject to travel approvals.

Keywords

Advocacy, Anti-Racism & Global Health, Community Engagement, Data Analysis, Health Equity, Health Systems Strengthening, Infectious Diseases, Literature Review/Writing, People-Centered Care, Primary Health Care