The proposed project will support the governments human capital development agenda by strengthening the capacity of two public universities to provide cutting-edge higher education and high-quality research key drivers of technology development and innovation. It targets the Universitas Lampung (UNILA) in Lampung Province which will be provided with world-class academic facilities, equipment, and innovation centers. The project will also strengthen their faculty, staff and student capacity to teach, research, and innovate. It will support the construction of a teaching hospital at UNILA to strengthen medical education. This will also boost UNILA’s capacity to develop high-quality health personnel and medical services to respond to increased demand for health services, including those triggered by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The project will provide new research facilities and grants to stimulate multidisciplinary research, drive innovation and commercialization of new products, and foster collaboration between universities and industry.
Output: Medical education and research capacity of UNILA strengthened. This
output will support improving the quality of medical education in UNILA and eventually contribute to developing qualified health professionals in Lampung and its vicinity. It aligns with the government’s goal of improving universal health coverage and supporting the increased demand for preventive and curative health services, including those triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This output includes the following:
(i) Construction and equipping of a pandemic-ready teaching hospital that is
gender-responsive, accessible, earthquake-resilient, and climate-smart. Pandemic-readiness will be achieved through design features that include isolation wards and the ability to rapidly expand into an intensive care unit facility while protecting the balance of hospital patients from the infectious disease. The teaching hospital will include facilities that support health care in several specialized fields, including a maternity ward and the provision of specialized obstetrics-gynecology services. The 100-bed teaching hospital will be classified as Type C4 under the Ministry of Health regulations and is upgradable to Type B with 250 beds, to respond to future demand. It will facilitate the admission of a broad array of patients to provide a diverse range of case-types for instructional purposes. The teaching hospital will be constructed within UNILA’s existing campus. The project will also procure medical and laboratory equipment as well as provide training in hospital and equipment management, operations, and maintenance. The teaching hospital will provide health services related to tropical infectious diseases, endocrine and other metabolic disorders, geriatrics, and rehabilitative medicine. Hospital management strategies derived from global pandemic readiness guidelines will be introduced and practiced, as necessary.
(ii) Construction and equipping of a new integrated research center (IRC), that
will be physically and operationally connected to the hospital and Faculty of Medicine. The IRC will serve as a research venue specializing in the life sciences. Five laboratories will be constructed concentrating research efforts on (a) tropical medicine; (b) biomolecular, genetic, and degenerative diseases; (c) pathology and toxicology; (d) nutrition; and (e) clinical and diagnostic trials. New basic and applied research programs in the health and life sciences will be launched. The construction of the new IRC will also include gender and accessibility requirements for buildings.
(iii) Capacity development of UNILA Faculty of Medicine and related staff will
have two major components and will utilize multiple delivery mechanisms. First, trainings will be delivered to strengthen knowledge and skills to support teaching and research in medical, health, and life sciences. Second, capacity development through training will focus on the knowledge and skills required to manage, operate, and maintain a hospital. IRC training will be delivered both on- and off campus, domestically and internationally.5 Workshops and seminars will be designed and delivered on-campus, while attendance at off-campus workshops, seminars, and conferences will also be supported. Individually customized longer-term internships and exchanges will be developed for academic and professional staff at leading domestic and international institutions to foster the acquisition of relevant skills and knowledge in addition to the creation and promotion of linkages involving ongoing professional development and collaborative research. Training will involve academic, management, technical and other support staff, with proportional representation of women and men. Training in hospital management will be delivered on-site and through other mechanisms as noted above to ensure the most effective and efficient operation of the hospital. Further, training to support the operation and maintenance of the sophisticated and expensive medical equipment will be provided. Training details are in Appendix 1 of this project administration manual (PAM).
(iv) Local, national, and international industry-university partnerships designed
to foster relevant skills development, research, and innovation will be expanded and will include a broad base of disciplines that cut across the life sciences. These partnerships will utilize the IRC and the hospital as and when appropriate.
(v) Partnerships between the Faculty of Medicine with neighboring hospitals,
polytechnics, and the local government in training delivery, research, clinical trials and contract-based medical check-ups for local industry and government staff will be expanded.
(vi) Applied research programs in the health and life sciences will be launched. This will include the design of an adaptation initiative to increase resilience of Lampung’s public health sector against impacts of climate change and variability.