The Reckitt Global Hygiene Institute was set up as a catalyst for change and has now launched its fellowship programme which intends to create a new generation of scientific leaders dedicated to the field of hygiene.
COVID-19 has brought hygiene, and more specifically the role it can play in our health, into sharp focus and further reinforced the fact that prevention is better than cure. However, despite hygiene being the preventive component of the global fight against infectious diseases it has languished as a minority scientific and political interest for decades. This was further reinforced by a recent Economist Intelligence Unit report which identified the ‘need for more diverse hygiene research across the globe’.
The RGHI post-doctoral fellowship programme, funded by a $25 million grant from Reckitt Benckiser, will support up to 25 post-doctoral researchers. By supporting early-career post-doctoral researchers the RGHI aims to drive significant evidence-based improvements in global hygiene by delivering impactful science.
Simon Sinclair, executive director, RGHI, said: “The legacy opportunity of COVID-19 is the triggering of a social movement that sees hygiene raised up the health agenda - something that will benefit all global citizens. However, we cannot expect people to adopt practices or for governments to change or develop relevant policies if there is no solid and reliable evidence to support those actions. Through the development of the RGHI and, specifically, our Fellowship Programme we hope to deliver impactful scientific papers and create a new generation of scientific leaders that will drive improvements in global hygiene.”
www.rghi.org
Reckitt Global Hygiene Institute launches fellowship programme
Published 19th February, 2021 by Neil Nixon
