The Global Health Academic Concentration
Follow UC San Diego School of Medicine's GHAC students around the world.
Hello, my name is Nene, and I'm spending the summer in Maputo, Mozambique doing research on peripheral neuropathy in patients with HIV at Maputo Central Hospital. Working in the internal medicine wards at Maputo Central Hospital has been an incredible learning experience. Every day I'm surrounded by so many brilliant medical students, residents, and attendings. … Continue reading Experiencing Healthcare in Maputo: A Medical Student’s Journey
Migori is a lush, vibrant county in western Kenya, nestled near Lake Victoria and the Tanzanian border. I just finished my first year of medical school at UC San Diego and then began my summer global health journey through GHAC. My first stop was a weekend in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya where I stayed … Continue reading Hello (or Habari) from Migori, Kenya!
Introduction In addition to primary care and community mental health, I spent part of my summer at specialty clinics in Brasília. These experiences deepened my understanding of infectious disease care, highlighted systemic inequities, and clarified my own calling toward psychiatry. HIV and PrEP Clinics – Conversations Through Medicine At the Hospital Universitário de Brasília (HUB), … Continue reading Lessons from HIV Clinics, Research and Psychiatry in Brasília
Introduction This summer, I spent sixty hours shadowing physicians and healthcare workers in Brasília. What stood out to me most was how Brazil’s unified health system (SUS) brings together public health, social work, and medical care to meet the needs of communities—often in ways that contrasted sharply with my experiences in the United States. The … Continue reading Community Care and Mental Health in Brasília
When I was applying for medical schools, I remember being captivated by a UC San Diego GHAC video where students described their ability to ‘engage in global health work in your own backyard’. As an out-of-state student passionate about global health, this resonated deeply with me. The ability to integrate global health work so closely … Continue reading Engaging in Global Health: My Experience in Tijuana
Olá! Tudo Bem. Hello from Maputo, Moçambique! A country home to some of the friendliest people in the world. Sunrise View from the UCSD Apartment I spend most of my week at Maputo Central Hospital, the largest public hospital in all of Moçambique. My research is in Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) diagnosis in the inpatient … Continue reading Olá! Tudo Bem. Hello from Maputo, Moçambique!
I was born in Guatemala and raised in Southern California. Growing up, I remember my mom always telling me, “En la casa hablamos Español, en la escuela puede habalr Ingles,” which translates to, “At home we speak Spanish, at school you can speak English.” In my early childhood, I remember struggling with both languages. There … Continue reading Found in translation
When I joined the GHAC program, I knew that I wanted to travel to Sub-Saharan Africa. I was eager to understand more about the region, and to have an opportunity to learn from physicians, fellow students, and patients there. Fortunately, I found a project working with American physicians Dr. Sierra Washington and Christy Zachek, and … Continue reading Mapping maputo
In Amman the buildings are dense, piled on top of each other, no spaces in between - evidence of a city that grew out of necessity. During the day the sight can be overwhelming, but at sunset the repetitive architecture reflects back a pink light that captures the city and you can feel a collective … Continue reading learning & Surveying compassion in Jordan
Training with UCSD research team on campus to learn blood and sputum processing techniques so I can successfully collect samples in TJ This summer, I am conducting a clinical study at Tijuana (TJ) General Hospital’s Clinica de Tuberculosis in TJ, Mexico to improve the accuracy and usability of a prototype assay which was designed to … Continue reading Teamwork in Tijuana