Mission and Vision

Mission
The Department of Health Education & Behavioral Sciences endeavors its level best to be a center of health education and promotion academic excellence by integrating behavioral, social, psychological and anthropological theories and principles in to the fields of public and medical sciences through training, research and service. The Department trains high caliber professional in undergraduate (BSc) and post-graduate (MPH in Health Education & Promotion) levels through the Jimma University’s cherished and innovative Community - Based (CBTP), Team Training Program (TTP), Developmental Team Training Program (DTT) and Student Research Program (SRP). In addition, it undertakes partnerships and networking to strengthen the capacity of the department and the stakeholders including the community organizations. Therefore, the department is trying every opportunity and its capacity and strength to address the societal needs of health and quality of life through holistic and innovative approaches of health education and health promotion principles and tools.

Vision
The Department of Health Education & Behavioral Sciences envisions being the pioneer and leading department both in Ethiopia and other African countries to train and produce high caliber and skillful health education and promotion experts and specialists through multidisciplinary training and practical approaches.

Values
The following are the central values of the Health Education & Behavioral Sciences Department

  1. Educational Relevance: Ensuring pertinence of the educational curricula to societal needs in innovative culturally acceptable way.
  2. High Quality Training: Training Health Education & Promotion Professionals at each levels with adequate knowledge, attitude, and intention of professional practice and skills which is up to the international standards of the profession and beyond by hybrid important fields of behavior change and health disciplines supported with real practice.
  3. Staff Professionalism: Maintaining the quality of competence, experience and skills in any of the health behavior change endeavors.
  4. Research: Ensuring research that is directly applicable to the societal needs and development as well as basic researches on innovative theories and models of behavior change for future predicted needs and demands of the society.
  5. Equity: The Department of Health Education & Behavioral Sciences envisions bringing health education and training opportunities accessible to all candidates irrespective of their socio-economic and political backgrounds
  6. Community Participation, Development and Empowerment: the Department from the start has a strong conviction in that active participation and involvement of the community in identifying their health needs, prioritizing, putting action plan, implementing it and monitoring and evaluation through the existing community organization as well as by creating new and valuable community organizations by the community themselves. Then only, any health program or development program can effectively utilize and empower the community for further health and quality of life.
  7. Service Extension: the Department also is trying to extend its service to the community organizations, NGOs, and Governmental Organizations to introduce new behavior and practice change theories and models such as community mobilization, social mobilization, social marketing, advocacy, coalition formation and networking, counseling psychology and health counseling through short training programs together with other collaborators.
  8. Transparency: creating, supporting and maintaining transparency and responsibility sharing working culture of the management and administrative process as well as the community; and clarifying ways of accountability to all real participants using and advocating the principles of behavior change and practicing those changes for common good and quality of life.
  9. Commitment: the Department is committed to high level performance, health service quality, organizational excellence and continuous development and improvement.
  10. Honesty: the Department is being committed to be ethical, honest and accountable to what it achieves.