Following the paradigm of social responsibility of university, CSI is committed to work with the community, closing the gap between the academic world and society as a whole. CSI’s core and inspiration is the concept of global health:
- health as a state of biopsychosocial wellbeing and a fundamental human right
- health and disease as outcomes of socio-economic, political, cultural, environmental as well as biological processes, shaped by globalisation
- not a new discipline or (just) a field of study, but an integrated action research approach to address complex health and health care needs in the framework of social justice
CSI’s main fields of study include health of vulnerable groups, accessibility of health services, primary health care policies, transformative health professional education.
Participatory action-research is the preferred methodology, as it allows to activate transformative networks within the context of study as well as on the very research group and its goals.
Action-research is seen as a tool to foster integration between knowledge and practices of the university, the community and the health and welfare services.
CSI educational approach reflects its vision on participation, engagement with the community and social change.
Interactive teaching and peer-led approaches, combined with experiential learning through case studies and field experiences, are extensively used in under and post graduate training to health professionals and social workers, continuous education for employees of the national health service, educational activities involving community associations and NGOs.
Topics include social determinants of health, health inequalities, globalisation and health, health and migration, primary health care, conflict of interest.