Photo: Dawit Tibebu/Mopix Productions
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“Be Part And Parcel Of The Solution”
Shimeles Ololo Sinkie is an instructor and the Department Head of the Health Service
Management at Jimma University in Ethiopia. He teaches, conducts research, advises
students, and supports students completing community service projects.
“Jimma University has a motto that says, we are in the community!” explains Shimeles,
and that motto reflects the university’s “community-based education philosophy.”
As Shimeles puts it, faculty are “always with the students, supervising, coaching,
mentoring… so that the students are ready to serve the community whether it is in a
town, or in the rural areas.” Jimma University’s community-based education philosophy
is a relatively unique approach that prioritizes practical experience.
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As an expert in health service management, Shimeles understands the need for
management skills, but before participating in the Leadership, Management, and
Governance (LMG) Program, he underestimated the importance of leadership and
governance skills. First a participant and now a trainer in the LMG Program, Shimeles
became an outspoken advocate for integrating leadership development into the preservice curriculum. “The leadership training was very interesting… and it focuses on
long-term impacts.”
Working with the USAID-funded LMG Project, Shimeles and other stakeholders across
Ethiopia collaborated on the development of a pre-service training curriculum to
ensure that all pre-service medical students are equipped with the leadership skills they
will need to face challenges and overcome them.
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One practical way that Jimma University is promoting youth leadership is through their Team Training Program. As part of the community-based
education philosophy, students work in teams to plan and implement community service projects.
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The importance of these practical leadership experiences for undergraduate and graduate students is not lost on Shimeles, who explains
something he learned during the LMG Program, “We are part and parcel of the problem, and we should be part and parcel of the solution.” By
integrating essential leadership, management, and governance skills training into pre-service curriculums, we can ensure that the next generation
of health professionals are ready to face any challenge on Day 1.
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www.LMGforHealth.org
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