Background

Around the world, there is a strong wave of advocacy for practicing evidence-based medicine. This has led academia in pursuit of high-level research to generate evidence-based medicine for better health. To achieve the above there is an increasing demand of research experts in the field of public health; especially in the context of Pakistan with double burden of disease, devolution of health department, epidemics of new infections, underused primary health care, overburdened tertiary health care, demographic transitions and the international pressure of ending polio. Moreover, natural disasters such as earthquake and floods in Pakistan further increases this demand. Ironically, in spite of the poor situation of public health within the country and the region, only few of the universities in Pakistan offer the doctorate in Public Health. However, there is a strong perceived demand from the public health graduates and professionals within the country for such a program, mainly because of the mounting cost of higher studies abroad. Institute of Public Health & Social Sciences (IPH&SS) at Khyber Medical University (KMU) has been one of the renowned and principal institutions in the province providing quality education in public health. Graduates from this institution are leading research activities in the region and have been recognized nationally as well as internationally. IPH&SS has strong public health faculty and the recent joining of two foreign PhDs in public health have enriched the faculty further. Therefore, the institute is equipped to support the launching of a doctoral program in public health.