The Global Health Academic Concentration
Follow UC San Diego School of Medicine's GHAC students around the world.
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
The city of Stockholm has a silence to it. Created by quiet streets frequented primarily by pedestrians, ancient buildings that seem to absorb sound into their storied bones, and a light breeze that ruffles the numerous green trees and carries excess sound away over the Baltic Sea. A peaceful place to call home, especially during … Continue reading Endless days of summer
I spent this summer studying maternal death at Hospital Central de Maputo. The project is centered around maternal death, with a particular focus on postpartum hemorrhaging (PPH) and the introduction of cryoprecipitate therapy at Hospital Central de Maputo (HCM) in Maputo, Mozambique. After working with Dr. Von Drygalsi and Michael Glazier to create data collection … Continue reading A Study of Maternal Death
The ESPINA project was established in 2008 with the aim of assessing the effects of pesticide exposure in the development of children living in agricultural settings. Over the past few weeks, I have had the pleasure of working with the team at the Cimas Foundation, helping with data collection for the 14-year follow-up of participants. … Continue reading Ecuador research
‘Snake bite’…‘electrocution…’ I read the board on the first day of my rotation in the Emergency Department (ED) at Dhulikhel Hospital in Dhulikhel, Nepal. During my time at Dhulikhel, I saw afflictions that I personally have not yet seen in America: epiglottitis, disseminated tinea corporis, prolapsed uterus with decubitus ulcers, many cases of pesticide poisoning, … Continue reading Snake Bite
Hola! I survived my final week of Costa Rican rotations in the interventional cardiology department at Hospital Calderón Guardia (where I previously rotated on hematology). Despite having a bout with “la gripe”(the flu – but not COVID!) and missing two days of work, I was still able to spend three full days on the cardiology … Continue reading Week 4 – Cardiología
Hola! Qué tal? This week I rotated through obstetrics and gynecology at Hospital de las Mujeres Adolfo Carit Eva. Hospital Carit, a public hospital only for women, is named after Adolfo Carit Eva, a French physician who studied at the University of Paris and then lived in Costa Rica. Upon his death is 1912, he … Continue reading Week 3 – Ginecología
Hola! This week I had the privilege of working at my neighborhood’s health center (I live in Pavas, a residential section of San Jose). On Monday and Thursday, I worked in a primary care clinic with Dr. Chinchilla. Like most primary care physicians here, Dr. Chinchilla is a “generalist” – i.e. someone who has completed … Continue reading Week 2 – Clinica de Pavas
Hola from Costa Rica! I have just finished a wonderful first week at Hospital Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia where I was observing in the hematology department. Hospital Calderón is a 630-bed public hospital in downtown San José, the capital city of Costa Rica and home to roughly half of the country’s 5 million inhabitants. Despite … Continue reading Week 1- Hematologia