Exposure visit to NIRT

The MSW S1 students recently completed a field‑work visit to the National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (NIRT), an ICMR centre in Chennai, where they were introduced to the diverse research activities and public‑health programmes that the institute undertakes. During the visit, the students observed first‑hand how social workers contribute to community engagement, patient counselling, data collection and health‑education initiatives, and they learned about the interdisciplinary collaborations that link medicine, sociology, psychology and statistics in tackling tuberculosis and related infectious diseases. The exposure highlighted the broad scope of social work in public‑health research, including opportunities in programme design, monitoring and evaluation, and policy advocacy, and opened their eyes to potential career pathways they had not previously considered. The students expressed genuine enthusiasm and admiration for the impactful work being done at NIRT, noting that the experience was both inspiring and motivating, and they left with a deeper appreciation of how social work can drive meaningful change in vulnerable communities.