In the summer between my sophomore and junior year of college (undergraduate), I participated in a medical volunteering program for […]
The workshop coincided with the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (NAAHP) Annual Conference, held this year in San Francisco. Advisors were eager to discuss strategies for guiding students towards reputable programs and avoiding companies and experiences where students are encouraged to “do too much, too soon.” Case studies were presented, based on actual incidents from the field. Some were particularly alarming: undergraduates delivering babies, students conducting hospital rounds unsupervised, even instances of students scrubbing in for surgery!
Fast forward to 2014. Global health has become a buzzword, conjuring up images of Bill and Melinda Gates projects and Partners in Health initiatives. Once a field that rallied for press, global health is receiving increasing limelight. Global health teaching in undergrad and medical curricula is also increasing and the 2013 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, states study abroad by U.S. based students is steadily increasing and is at an all time high.
Rain or shine Seattle was brimming with energy and dialogue, as The University of Washington hosted the 11th Annual Western Regional International Health Conference (WRIHC), themed “Uncensored: Gender, Sexuality, & Social Movements in Global Health.” The largest student lead conference in the nation, nearly 600 attendees from around the country and the globe joined the dialogue around gender and sexuality, topics too often stigmatized and neglected. I was there as an alumna of three different Child Family Health International (CFHI) global health education programs, representing CFHI amongst an army of global health enthusiasts.
An article profiling Child Family Health International – CFHI’s Global Health Education Programs in the current online edition of the Association of American Medical Colleges’ journal Academic Medicine contrasts two interpretations of ‘helping.’ The students writing the article draw an important contrast between the two definitions of ‘helping’ represented by CFHI Programs and brigades.
At the recent NAFSA conference CFHI paused to reflect on the role of social justice in health. Social Justice has been studied as one of the key ethical principles for students wanting to be involved in Global Health. Increasingly there has been discussion on whether social justice should be a factor when selecting students for admission into medical school.
At CUGH’s Annual Meeting last week in Washington, DC educators and students from over 60 countries met to discuss the global health landscape. Perhaps one of the most powerful and emotional sessions was one that captured power of reflection in global health education. Eight trainees from undergraduate to post-graduate levels read personal reflections on global health education experiences that affected them.
Often the global health dialogue is dominated by Western voices. IFMSA allows 1,000+ medical students from around the world to work face-to-face twice a year. It democratizes global health and allows for crucial relationship development that is necessary for a unified global advocacy voice for health equity and justice. During the IFMSA alumni meeting attendees praised CFHI for its gold-standard model for global health education. Colleagues from Ghana, Serbia, Philippines, Nigeria, and beyond approached me with gratitude for CFHIs important advocacy voice in the global health education field.
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