The Global Health Academic Concentration
Follow UC San Diego School of Medicine's GHAC students around the world.
One of the best things about having a summer birthday is that I always am surprised by where the next year takes me. This year, I got to spend my 25th birthday in Ecuador, making it one of my best yet. To have a day I would remember for a lifetime, I decided to hike … Continue reading Hiking Volcán Cotopaxi: My 25th Birthday Experience
Traditional Nepali Food (Dal-bhaat) with Rice, lentils, curd, different curries and pickles This summer, I had the privilege of working on a qualitative study of abortion conducted by the Center for Research on Environment, Health, and Population Activities (CREHPA). This project is part of the larger global abortion study known as the "Turnaway Study," led … Continue reading Insights from my Summer with CREHPA in Nepal
There were early signs that my summer in Salvador as a GHAC student would play out quite unexpectedly, but it didn’t really hit me until - 2 hours into a 10-hour flight from Houston to São Paulo - the flight attendants asked over the intercom if there was a doctor on board. Then again. Then … Continue reading Barril Dobrado – Bahia, Brazil
After completing my first year of medical school, I returned to Nepal for my GHAC research project. Throughout the 26-hour journey, I felt immense gratitude for the opportunity to conduct research in my home country. There’s something uniquely powerful about revisiting the home and the familiar alleys you grew up in. It instantly reminds you … Continue reading Summer Back Home – Nepal
Hello from Bogotá! I am writing this blog post on my way back home from an incredible summer in Ecuador during my 7-hour layover in Colombia. I came to Ecuador with GHAC to work on the ESPINA project (Exposición Secundaria a Plagucidias en Niños y Adolescentes). This project is under the direction of Dr. José … Continue reading Exploring Health Impacts of Pesticides in Ecuador
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 Mortality
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