Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest Of Dr. Paul Farmer

Dr. Farmer understood that their horrid living conditions would have to change in order for his patients to heal. Dr. Farmer knew that Haiti itself would be unable to make this transition, which is why relying on the wealth, generosity and action from others around the world, to provide adequate necessities for the Haitians became such an important task. When his patients were given a better quality of life, they began to maintain health. For most Americans, we would be unable to fathom the undesirable living conditions, but at the same time understand why diseases run rampant in such an awful economic environment. Without the interdependence of the wealthy around the world and humanitarian belief that we are all human and deserve to be treated with equality, compassion and love, Dr. Farmer may not have been able to succeed as well as he did in Haiti. Kidder (2003) states “You want to see where Christ crucified abides today? Go to where the poor are suffering and fighting back, and that’s where he is (pg. 79).”

America — a land known for its ideals of freedom and new opportunities, a nation built under the idea that every man and women is created equal. However, the definition of what makes a person an American is entirely different from what it is that makes up America, itself. J.Hector St. John Crevecoeur, author of Letters from an American Farmer (1782), exposes what he believes makes an American. However, when compared to the standards of what makes an American in today’s world, it seems that becoming an American then was much simpler then, than it is today. The definition of an American is always evolving due to the influences of our changing nation. During a simpler time, Crevecoeur defined an American as someone of European

A Heart for the Work: Journeys Through an African Medical School by Claire L. Wendland is both an first hand account of time spent in an African medical school and hospital as well as a critique on Western medical practices. Dr. Wendland, an accomplished anthropologist and physician, provides a first hand account of her time in a Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world. Through this account she provides insight into the complete journey a student must take to become a doctor in conditions much different than our own. These insights and research are used to argue that medicine, or biomedicine as it is called, is part of a cultural system and is predicated on the cultural ideals and resources of developed nations. Wendland uses the differences in moral order, technology, and resources between the Malawian culture and our own culture to provide evidence for her main argument.

“The only real nation is humanity” (Farmer 123). This quote represents a huge message that is received in, Tracy Kidder’s, Mountains Beyond Mountains. This book argues that universal healthcare is a right and not a privilege. Kidder’s book also shows the audience that every individual, no matter what the circumstances, is entitled to receive quality health care. In the book Kidder represents, Paul Farmer, a man who spends his entire life determined to improve the health care of impoverished areas around the world, namely Haiti, one of the poorest nations in the world. By doing this the audience learns of the horrible circumstances, and the lack of quality health care that nations like Haiti

Compounding this lack of care, Haitians also lack clean drinking water and proper sanitation systems. Less than half the population has access to clean drinking water, a rate that is only surpassed by civil war-torn African nations. Even worse, half the population of Haiti can be categorized as “food insecure,” and this malnutrition has created a generation where half of all Haitian children are undersized (IFRC, 2010). In addition, this poor sanitation and hygiene, coupled with inadequate nutrition, have contributed to exceptionally high levels of individuals with chronic, yet often at best ill-treated, conditions.

From birth it’s the experiences that shape who we become. James Farmer was a boy that was the first generation born out of slavery. He was born in Marshall, TX to a father who was a minister and a mother who would stay at home. My time in the world had been simpler then that of James Farmer, due to the time period in which he grew up in that effected his education, the way he was parented all because of the color of his skin.

Many of us now attempt to view the world in an empirical way. However, according to Goodbeer, many of the people that dismiss the superstitious beliefs of the witch trials fail to realize the “leaps of faith” made by modern scientist. This hypocrisy is seen when one looks at the differences in how our worlds operate. In particular when we deal with diseases, back in the seventeenth century they were incapable of diagnosing even the most of common ailments. The way that seventeenth century New Englanders had of dealing and explaining these uncertainties that we no longer face was by explaining it through religion and supernatural phenomenon. Furthermore, they did not have the ability to counteract environmental occurrences that could lead to harm such as darkness and cold, which we now have. Having understood why and how the seventeenth century New Engalnders began to rely on the supernatural to explain certain occurrences in their world we can begin to understand the cultural context of the time (Godbeer,

Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder is a biography written in 2003 about a benevolent Haitian doctor named Paul Farmer. In the first person point of view of Kidder, Kidder writes about Farmer’s beliefs, goals, and life events that relate to his work in Haiti. Even though Farmer, along with many other characters in Mountains Beyond Mountains, is clearly an optimistic person, Kidder struggled with seeing the hope and reason behind trying so hard to solve things that seemed obviously impossible to him. As a result, the constant interactions between pessimistic people and positive people, combined with the pessimistic character eventually becoming positive, shows that Kidder uses juxtaposition to prove that, to a very high extent, Kidder constantly reflects upon the

Teachers invested in their student’s success and learning go beyond the label of just any teacher. Dr. Farmer is one of those teachers who are willing to go an extra mile or two to ensure success in her students. She is committed to actively helping each individual student achieve the goals they have set for themselves in the classroom-and in general. Dr. Farmer’s teaching impacted my education by allowing me to believe in myself to achieve the goals I have.

Paul Farmer mission is providing suitable health care to under resourced countries, specifically on providing treatment for tuberculosis and AIDS. I admire his willingness to take on the challenge of providing health care in a country that is under resourced. When reading the book, the reader discovers the meaning behind the title Mountain Beyond Mountains. During the book, Dr. Paul Farmer describes his journey as a series of mountain. Once you get to the top of another you see the many more to come. This directly related to his obstacles to starting his aid relief to countries in terms of getting the funding, overcoming culture barriers and how to truly provide relief without to0 much intervention in the country: each time one mountain is overcome there is another one waiting to be taken on. Therefore, I admire his resilience in continuing to preserve against the obstacles he had to face along with the future obstacles to come. In addition, Dr. Paul Farmer, in active Professor at Harvard Medical College and a practicing physician at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. These jobs in Boston afford him the time and the opportunity to follow his passion. Also, these jobs allowed him connection to beginning his funding for his work that he would complete in third-world

If there is not access then it would be a valid reason that people are still going to witch doctors to use these potions and rituals for healing instead. In an article by Edward J Mills and his colleagues, they gathered research over 9 countries in Africa to estimate the financial cost of doctors educated in Africa that emigrate after graduation. It was found in their research that countries in Africa have lost anywhere from “$2.16m (1.55m to 2.78m) for Malawi to $1.41bn (1.38bn to 1.44bn) for South Africa” (Mills et al. 4). These statistics portray how these sub-Saharan African countries are educating a plethora of doctors, but most end up emigrating to other first world countries, thus leaving a shortage of doctors in sub-Saharan Africa. Another article was written 13 years prior by F.J.C. Millard, a well-known physician who traveled to South Africa a number of times, goes through a list of issues in the health care system of South Africa and lists one of the main problems is the shortage of doctors. Millard states that there are enough doctors educated in Africa, however, “there is a severe shortage in rural areas” and “many doctors emigrate” (748). These two articles, one a research conducted and the other a first-hand account, were written 13 years apart and their findings are almost identical. It is conclusive that

My life started in Vancouver, British Columbia. Thanks to my convincing parents, my world has been a surprising mixture of ups, downs, rights and lefts. When I was young a lot of my time was dedicated towards traveling. So I quickly became independent. I attended school on the west side of Vancouver, but I spent a lot of by time downtown where my father lived. On the weekends I would drive up with my older brother to our cabin in Point Roberts where I would spend my time camping, hiking, boating and fishing. Perhaps it was these extraordinary sights of my childhood that pursued me to study Zoology, because after spending time outdoors I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the subject.

J. Hector De Crevecoeur, a famous French American Writer, was greatly influenced when it came to the publishing of his amazing novel “Letters from An American Farmer” by: Mr. Thomas Jefferson and his critically acclaimed “Declaration of Independence”, Benjamin Franklin and the enlightened enthusiasm he developed when he moved to France a few months after his wife died, Jean Jacques Rousseau and his very intimate novels especially “Les Confessions”, and a group of famous writers who had dominated the Academie francaise when he was in Paris: D Alembert, La Harpe, Target Marmontel, and remarkable poet Saint Lambert. Although he ended up describing the life of the British Colonies in America, he used the character James for portraying the new

Some of the key components of the Pan African model of health revolve around the way that they explain illness. While it's true that disease is universal, the manner in which traditional African culture explains disease and where disease comes from is strikingly different from the perspectives of modern medicine and contemporary culture. "For example, traditional African medicine views the cause of disease differently from the scientific form of medicine practiced in hospitals"¦ For example, the scientific medical view defines tuberculosis (TB) as an invasion of the body by a specific strain of micro-organism. Most traditional African cultures believe that TB is a source of witchcraft or sorcery, caused by jealousy. They believe the body is invaded by a poison. Traditional treatments usually aim to cause vomiting or diarrhea to clear out the poison (Kyriacos et al., 2008). It is incredibly common for illness to be viewed as something which is directly connected to the realm of the spiritual or the supernatural. Other components of this model of health are that balanced health is a gift from God and that illness

This article focuses on Voodooism, which is a “religion” practiced in Haiti since the beginning of its creation. In this article, the author claims that despite the misconceptions that many have about the practice of voodoo, Haitians don’t consider it as their religion, but more something that they serve and use to meet their religious needs. While most of them consider themselves Catholics, Haitians serve the lwa, which are African spirits that are honored for their powerfulness. Practiced since the beginning of the Haitian Revolution in 1791, Voodoo helped Haitian descendants survived slavery,