The Path that LED Me to Public Health

Sitting thousands of miles away from my homeland of India, as I write this, I think about the path that led me to Public Health. Even when I was a child, I constantly believed I would build a career in the medical field.

In kindergarten when I was asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” And I always responded by saying, “I want to be a doctor. ” During school years, I always had a curiosity for learning the physiology and mechanisms behind the human body. I was the President of the Science Club, and I helped organize various science fairs at our school. At Wright State University, I got a chance to pursue my lifelong goal of studying biology with concentration in applied physiology. During this time, I was drawn to the notion of not only concentrating on direct patient care that physicians provide, but also solving issues that affect the health of an entire population.

Growing up in a developing country, I have understood the importance of health care deeply. India’s Public Health system is still failing its poor, despite a flourishing economy. Not only does it have a long way to go to meet global standards of health care, but also is inundated with growing epidemic of non-communicable and infectious diseases. The main reason that I want to pursue Master’s in Public Health is that it is the study of protecting and improving the health of communities through policy making, research for disease and injury prevention. With growing economic and epidemiological transitions, the problems of urban-rural divide and low insurance coverage are growing increasingly evident. Indian government was successful in building infrastructures in urban areas but failed to do so in rural. Public health issues touch more than 70% of the families in my homeland. I came across an article about this transition which made some shocking revelations about one of the rural areas where more than 500 children died in a hospital due to a variety of reasons, including shortages of medicine and oxygen after a private vendor cut the supply over unpaid bills. This misfortune is just another instance of the lack of accountability. I know that if the health sector was well equipped, better funded, and better managed with apparent and effective policies, this kind of tragedy could have been averted.

My passion for public health grew stronger during the latter half of my undergraduate years, it was when I took a few courses which steered me in the right direction as I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Science. When I began my research, I realized that I want to contribute to the welfare of the society by diminishing the socioeconomic differences. As Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Without action, you aren’t going anywhere. ” There were several obstacles that came my way during the course of my undergraduate years, which I tried to conquer in the best ways possible, and at most part I succeeded. I moved to the United States, the land of great opportunities just a couple years back when I started at Wright State University. I was new to the system and I was trying to get a sense of it. My first semester proved to be difficult as a lot of personal issues started to develop.

Firstly, my parents were planning to send me back to India due to financial reasons. Secondly, my father got extremely sick during the same time, it was very tough for me and I had to take care of my duties as a daughter. Since my parents did not speak fluent English, I was there with him all the time during his stay at the hospital. As a result of which, my education was affected as I could not concentrate. But, in my second year I pulled myself together and started working hard, even though I did not completely succeed in getting the best grades that I could, I never lost sight of my goal and pursuing it till this day and will continue to do so. While I was in school, I started volunteering at Soin Medical Center, Dayton, Ohio, Pristine Senior Living and Post-Acute Care of Beavercreek, Ohio, and St. Vincent de Paul Gateway Shelter for Women and Families, Dayton, Ohio. I tried to make a difference in the lives of the people in any way I could. At Soin Medical Center I performed several duties from working as a front desk receptionist to working in the Emergency Department and the Maternity Department as well. Volunteering in these several departments allowed me to interact with many diverse patients and families and understand their perspective of healthcare, it also helped me get a contrasting view of health care systems in India and the United States. Like for example, when my father was in the hospital, though his medical expenses were quite high, it was taken care by the hospital administration despite him not having insurance. But, if the same had happened in India, a family who is not financially stable might not have received the medical treatment that they deserve. This made my mounting sense of compassion and engagement with the subjects of disparities in healthcare, my choice to pursue Master’s in public health has derived from this desire.

Apart from volunteering, I was an Undergraduate Research Assistant (senior year at Wright State University) where I provided support in molecular and cellular studies which was designed to determine the virus affecting the diseased frogs, it helped me learn to balance collaborative and interdisciplinary work. I also worked as an Undergraduate Teaching Assistant (Junior year at Wright State University) in the Anatomy lab, it helped me develop proficient characteristics such as self-confidence and communication and leadership skills. I was also appointed as the President of “Physiology is Phun Club” during my Senior year at Wright State University, I performed various duties including organizing events, assisting other executive officers, and serving as a secondary signatory on financial accounts. It helped me develop team qualities, gain leadership skills, and practical experience in the field of my study. My organization organized middle school events where our club members went to Coy middle school and taught 6 graders about different organs, I planned an event where we volunteered at a senior center, we spent quality time with the elderly, and we donated blankets to the homeless shelter.

All the events that my organization and I arranged allowed me to give back to the community. I chose to pursue Master’s in Public Health at your esteemed University as it offers me with a platform to acquire knowledge, experience, and interact in a multiethnic environment with extremely accomplished faculty and staff. As an imminent professional in public health I plan to study health inequalities by focusing on working to re-evaluate, develop, plan, and implement effective policies. My utmost strengths as an aspirant to your program are the fact that I am a very hard worker and a swift learner. My enthusiasm, academic skills and ability, cultural background, and polyglot abilities practiced will contribute to the graduate Public Health program. As my home country is in need of major help in terms socioeconomic differences in health care system, I want to work toward equality and justice in the field of health and my admission to your University is critical to make my passion a reality.