Experience 3:
Democratizing Healthcare
Spring semester 2024 I took an honors seminar titled Democratizing Healthcare. In this course, I learned about the historical and political influence on healthcare systems, socioeconomic and racial bias in healthcare, and health disparities. I learned how fractured and divided America is regarding the healthcare system. One notable difference between the American healthcare system compared to other countries is how the US healthcare system is economically driven and for-profit. This causes healthcare to be expensive in America and many citizens do not have insurance. After spending the semester learning, we traveled to Germany to implement and observe what we learned in the real world. One of the most valuable experiences when traveling is talking to the locals to understand what it is like from their perspective. We were able to do this with the Midwifery students at Frankfurt University. Through talking with the students, I learned how both healthcare and education are significantly more affordable and accessible in Germany compared to America. The vast difference was exemplified when we toured the maternity hospital because they have very good health outcomes and give mothers autonomy and control over their birthing experience. We also toured the city of Essen and Frankfurt where we learned about their history. During my free time, I enjoyed exploring German culture through local food, shops, and museums.
Below, I attached my final project where we were instructed to choose a social determinant of health in a particular community. I chose to focus on road injuries in Africa. I chose this topic because of my connection to Africa as well as my job as a Medical Assistant in neurosurgery where I have seen the effects and prevalence of road injuries. When I visited Tanzania, one thing that stuck with me was the lack of road regulations that ensure motorists' safety. In addition to a lack of regulations, I have seen the issue with accessibility to healthcare in Africa. This piece of work demonstrates how I can apply what I learned in this course regarding social determinants of health, socioeconomic influence, political influence, and different healthcare systems to the real world.
