Public Health Personal Statement

Seven in ten deaths in the United States, are attributable to chronic disease (“Leading Causes” 1). These diseases are not on account of bacteria or viruses, which could be treated with an appropriate prescription or vaccine. Chronic conditions are developed through unhealthy lifestyles and behaviors such as a lack of exercise, poor nutrition, poor sleeping habits, and substance use (e.g. tobacco). Consequently, seven in ten of every death can be prevented with changes in lifestyle. The CDC states that these conditions, “are among the most common, costly, and preventable of all health problems” (“Chronic Disease” 1). Although these conditions have clear and definite causes (knowing the exact reason and “cure” for them), they are becoming more prevalent rather than domesticated. According to Wu and Green, “Between 2000 and 2030 the number of Americans with chronic conditions will increase by 37 percent, an increase of 46 million people” (1). This increase comes with an increase in health care costs: the CDC reported that the U.S. spent three trillion dollars on health care in 2014 (“Health Expenditures” 1). 86% of these costs was associated with these conditions (“Prevention” 1). Despite there being a range of causes of why patients make these choices, one issue that may be less familiar to others is the lack of knowledge in preventative medicine among health care professionals. Current training standards are not adequately educating or equipping health care professionals

Public health deals with the public, community, and society as a whole. It promotes and protects the health of people and the communities where they live, learn, work and play. I believe that the many leadership, teamwork, communication and community skills I have gained through NHS and FBLA, will allow me to excel in the Public Health Field. Which will, in turn, allow me to be the best I can be, enabling me to be a great positive force in my community.

My interest in public health emerged when I recognized how much the health and well-being of an individual affects a community. From a young age, both my parents have struggled with their health; my mother having diabetes and my father having hypertension. I have seen how their health has affected them on the day to day basis and how it has affected those around them at a community level. As I continue to learn more about public health I am beginning to understand that many of the health problems, like the ones my parents face, can be prevented through lifestyle adjustments. Also, I have learned the most effective way to prevent diseases in a community is through advocating healthy habits to avoid health problems from emerging in the first place.

Since I was a child, I have been fascinated by the mechanism of life. The human body is a remarkable masterpiece of evolutionary development, with many diverse systems producing an organism that we can only dream to emulate in a lab; My love of science is just one of my reasons for choosing Public Health. I enjoy a challenge, particularly towards a specific rewarding objective and although public health is a very demanding career, it can be enormously gratifying, highlighted by the many epidemiologists I have spoken to during my experience and on a personal level. I Graduate from Miami Dade College in 2007 with an Associate AA in pre-nursing, then proceed to get another associate from Miami Dade College in 2010 with an AS in Medical Technology passing the board for technologists the same year.

During my undergraduate career at Florida A&M University, I discovered the Public Health graduate school program and I knew this would be a perfect way to make health and diseases, infectious and otherwise, fit into my future plans while expanding my horizons. I have the desire to be one of the movers in the healthcare field, finding answers to the never-ending questions as to why certain diseases are prevalent and others are not. I want to be the person that researches, plans, and executes healthcare programs and policies that will ultimately improve the healthcare field in America. I naturally see myself as a leader and I know that the field of Public Health will help me sharpen my skills as well as bring out the leader that I know I am.

The Advances in public health have been possible due to the contributions of people with ideals of change who decided to make a difference in their communities through the creation of innovative ideas capable of changing the lifestyle of a community. Public health is about helping people to stay healthy, and protecting them from that psychosocial factor that may affect their life and that is why the public health worker must have a passion for a change and for a better quality of life for their community. In the beginnings of public health there were two people who acted as agents of social change and they were Sara Josephine Baker and Clara Barton.

When I first arrived at UC Davis as an undergraduate, I was unaware of what global health was. Although my interests aligned with health topics, such as disease prevention and improving health literacy, I did not explore any other graduate degrees besides an M.D. However, my career plans changed when I joined a public health advocacy group called RIVER (Recognizing Illnesses Very Early and Responding). RIVER prioritized educating underserved populations in Davis and the Greater Sacramento area about how essential preventive care is to one’s health. Through my participation in the organization as a board member, I learned more about preventive care and applied that knowledge by teaching underprivileged communities about how to make healthier lifestyle changes through exercise and nutrition. This organization’s

From Vicki Kistler’s talk, I learned that Public Health overlaps with a lot of Health Science majors. Some majors that involve Public Health are IT, Pre-med, and undecided (basic science classes). The goal of Public Health is to respond, present, and help people live happy and healthy lives. Public Health also isn’t one major or discipline, it’s a philosophy. Some careers in the Public Health field are adoption, reducing mortality for infants, and being a lawyer who supports the Public Health Law. There are 48 health instructors out of 50 and there also isn’t a Public Health department in every county of Pennsylvania. In Allentown, there are two categories of Public Health: Personal (based on personal aspects/preferences) and Environment

My unwavering interest in infectious diseases began in middle school when I read the book, The Hot Zone, by Richard Preston that intricately describes the Ebola virus. While the description of how the virus destroys the human body are unpleasant, this virus fascinated me. Consequently, in my spare time I read about other infectious diseases, such as cholera and tuberculosis, on Wikipedia and other web pages for my personal enjoyment. Years later, I participated in Princeton Model Congress in high school where I first learned about public health. Participants made mock congressional bills to be passed in a congress comprised of high school and college students in order to implement a national change. My mock bill advocated for the incorporation of HIV tests within annual physicals. The purpose of this bill was to ensure that more people became knowledgeable about their status and with this knowledge, HIV positive individuals can receive care faster and take proactive measures to prevent infecting others with this virus. As I researched various facts about the HIV epidemic and how HIV impacts communities in Washington, D.C., my interest in public health evolved even though I did not know of the official name, public health. At the time, I wanted to be a lawyer and averted from anything science or math related. Yet, I cared about my community and I wanted to make a difference. I rediscovered my interest in public health in college as a biology major.

I seriously considered going into public health prior to my decision to go into medicine, and worked with several not-for-profit institutions, and believe this scholar track will help me apply these experiences to clinical care. As I embark on my career as a physician, I will continue to grow in my role as an advocate for patients, a translator of the factors that exacerbate disease, and a provider of constructive solutions, which would be greatly improved through the Population Health Scholar Track. I also believe that this opportunity will help me achieve my goal as physician to use the knowledge gained in direct patient encounters to prevent others from falling ill in the same manner and understand the broader sociological context that patient encounters fall in, in order to use this information to better treat patients. In the orthopedic surgery clinic where I currently work I saw a need for this knowledge when a patient refused to be examined although she desperately wanted treatment. I can appreciate the pressure the surgeon faced to treat the patient and I also understand the patient had seen many doctors and no longer wished

The Public Health Associate Program would help me fulfill these goals by providing a unique on-the-job experience and competency development so that I could successfully fill a role in public health, management or community development in the future. In reviewing the program’s curriculum domains and competencies,

By participating in the Future Public Health Leader Program (FPHLP), I hope to gain knowledge and experience of working in a Public Health environment with people of similar interest. As I am completing my second year at University of California, Santa Cruz, I have decided to major in Community Studies and Psychology with an emphasis in Public Health. This is because of the large stigma of health issues attached to my Samoan community.

During childhood, I was taught how to maintain good health through health education from my parents. However, during my past volunteer efforts at St. Francis Medical Center, I witnessed how a lack of health education can have devastating effects. Many patients from the surrounding Lynwood community lacked access to basic health guidance, which led to obesity and late stage type II diabetes. I witnessed the debilitating and life-threatening effects of otherwise preventable diseases in these patients, such as heart disease, tissue necrosis, and limb amputation. I hope to place an emphasis on disease prevention in my own work with patients by encouraging them to be vocal and proactive about their health and incorporate exercise, nutrition, and

I was drawn to the idea of not only focusing on one-on-one patient care that doctors provide, but also solving problems that affect the health of entire populations. The study of disease and health within populations; for instance, preventing disease, promoting health, and reducing health problems between groups are the main reasons I want to pursue an M.P.H focusing on epidemiology. These are my strongest interests because I believe they are important in improving our world’s health.

When it comes to our health, university students are notorious for becoming complacent with routine examinations that further translate to later on in their lives. As a member of the UBC community and Greek Life, there is a lack of support and initiative for individuals to keep up with various disease screenings that should be a part of one’s regular regime. There is a lack of information, promotion, and awareness for the preventative measures that can be done in order to protect against certain cancers, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. People who are at risk, might not even know they are, or life circumstances can arise that make people want to take action but they don’t know where to start. By implementing certain strategic