Since beginning my master's degree in public health at the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, I have began to zero-in on my niche. The world of public health is so expansive, there's so many directions that you can travel in, it can feel tiresome at times. Global
health speaks to me, it has been softly whispering into my ear for years now. You may ask, what it is that attracts me to it? My passion for global public health is not derived from one simple factor. Like a health intervention, there's a package that tightly bonds me to public health, and the challenge of improving the health status of all, no matter their race, gender, sexual preference, and other status markers that distinguish us from one another. The more I dive into my coursework, I'm becoming pulled closer and closer to maternal, child, and adolescent health. From a physical and psychological development standpoint, the most important stages in life occur when we're younger. Exposure in our youth and adolescent are crucial to our development, and can have both positive and negative long-lasting effects on our overall health; not limited to just the physical, but also our psychological and mental health.
Watching children, well even newborns, have to face the harsh reality of living and battling a life-threatening diseases, motivates me and fuels me to take charge, and use my knowledge, creativity, and passion to address these crucial health concerns. Being born into a comfortable family setting i
n the United States, I felt extremely fortunate. Although having a cancer at a young age is not an ideal situation, overcoming this obstacle was easier for me than others. Having the financial resources and access to high quality healthcare are freedoms that many of us take for granted sometimes. The hard truth is that not everyone has access or the means to attains the resources required to beat diseases, chronic conditions, and life-threatening syndromes. Cancer is highest in developing countries, claiming 70% of the total prevalence rate for the world. I'm not going to input my economic beliefs, because that's not the purpose of this blog. While I believe that there should be a sense of responsibility, I also believe that everyone deserves a fair chance at life. Everyone should have the right to live a meaningful life, filled with good health and happiness. Do I know the "most fair" way to level the playing field? If I'm being honest, that is a constant challenge that I grapple with frequently. Do I believe that there's a way? Absolutely. I believe that it requires more than government handouts; it requires people to take charge of their own health, and have a sense of agency.
Moving away from the health of vulnerable populations, like mothers, newborns, and children, I also have a strong attachment to mental health. Mental health is a newer area of public health, that is beginning to gain more traction in the field. Combating the stigma that is associated with having a psychological disorder will be the first step to improving the overall mental health of communities all over the world. Training the public to treat mental health the same way that physical health is treated has been a long-lived battle. Why should having schizophrenia be any different than having cancer? Both are diseases. While each is derived from different sources, they both result from some chemical imbalance and flawed biological process. While others might not be able to see it, there's a strong connection between violence and mental health. In the past ten years, the number of gun-related homicides has seen a dramatic increase. What do all of these situations have in common? The perpetrators all battle some form of mental illness. Changing the conversation and ideologies behind mental health, increasing access and availability of services to treat mental health and those affected by it, will both lead to better outcomes for society.A New Age, A New School of Thought
Even before committing to Tulane, I toyed around with many different ideas; several ways in which I can leverage all of my skills and knowledge.
When applying to programs, I applied to both strictly-MPH program, and MBA-MPH dual degree programs. After focusing on domestic health for the entirety of my professional career, I knew that I needed a change, and that I wanted to pursue a more global approach on addressing public health issues. My parents, friends, and others question why public health? My mom says, "I'm not sure how you're going to survive. You grew up in a gated, country club community; your father and I provided you with a very comfortable upbringing. You know you're not going to be able to afford this lifestyle." When I was younger, my mother's realistic plea might have had me second guessing my career choice, though after growing up in a very superficial community, being forced to grow up quickly after being diagnosed with cancer at a young age, and witnessing the level of greed, unhappiness, and immorality that occurs in these upper-middle and upper strata of society, some things just outweigh the value of material goods. I understand that money is required to live, though the cost of necessities are at best minimal. I know what you're thinking right about now... if you never had cancer, would you still have this mindset. Truthfully speaking, probably not. I'd probably be pursuing an MBA in Real Estate Development at the NYU Stern School of Business, and on my way to building a multi-million -- billion dollar real estate empire. Though, I do not like to live in the past, living in a hypothetical world. As historians say, "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." Being told you have a disease, that can be life and death, really changes your perspective on life. While your friends are busy being teenagers, you're sitting in a bed questioning whether or not you'll be here tomorrow. You suddenly realize that the material goods that once were of a high value to you are valueless compared to your health. If your parents could trade in their imported luxury cars and palatial estate, if it meant that you could bypass the eight months of hell that are about to follow, they would without any questions. Your dreams of being on the cover of Fortune magazine suddenly begin to dissipate; you realize your ego is short lived. You find a greater purpose in life, something that extends far beyond oceanfront mansions and supermodel wives. And that's what happened, the rest is history.While my social experience at Tulane and in New Orleans has not been ideal nor what I was hoping for, I keep reminding myself that I did not come here to replace my best friends. I've thoroughly enjoyed interacting with the other focused and level-headed individuals. Being challenged with thought provoking questions by my professors and peers; having those controversial, eye-twitching conversations has really forced me to consider other sides of the story. Hearing my peers speak about their past experiences, such as serving overseas in the Peace Corps, and working in uncivilized societies in the Middle-East, has been eye opening. Everyone has a story to tell, each one giving more color and lucidity to the problems that many of us only read or hear about, much of what is flawed and bended by the media.
While Tulane has a much younger student body than other graduate level public health programs, there's actually a plethora of interesting individuals in the graduate-level public health programs at Tulane. Of the many experiences that I have had thus far in this program, some of the best are the interactions that I have had with the international students, and the relationships that I am building with my peers who traveled tens and thousands of miles to expand their public health knowledge, so that they can return to their native countries, and apply the skills and applications back that they acquired here at Tulane, and work towards improving the health status of their homelands. From Afghanistan to Nigeria, China to India, you name it, there's certainly no lack in diversity at Tulane. Hearing stories from people who've witnessed and experienced these public health issues firsthand brings another level of truth and depth to coursework.
Life: A Cylindrical Process
I'm not entirely sure where I want to be next year. There's many different paths to take, from working for a not-for-profit international-focused organization like FHI 360, to working for a for-profit public health consulting firm like John Snow, Inc. I'm not sure an MPH will be a terminal degree for me, part of me is hungering for that MBA. I cannot promise that public health will be a life-long commitment for me, though I hope to definitely apply the skills and knowledge that I attained/attain during these next two semesters towards both professional and personal pursuits in my life. No matter where I go or what I do, there will always be something that links my responsibilities to healthcare, social equity, and economic development.
