This past week, Jenn and I met with a national organization
called MEDLIFE, thinking that many of their missions might be similar to
GlobeMed. This was set up through the sociology department and we thought it
might be a useful tool.
While
MEDLIFE is a very reputable organization and does have very outcomes with their
work, Jenn and I both left feeling very happy we work with GlobeMed. MEDLIFE
does a lot of medical brigade trips and tries to use ground staff and engage in
other community projects in the areas they visit, all of which are great initiatives
that should be applauded. But I still left so satisfied with GlobeMed.
Health
issues in developing countries and even in developed ones frequently have preventable
causes. Why are TB, malaria, diphtheria, and other infectious disease less
prevalent in the US? What makes developing countries more susceptible?
One major
reason is poverty in relation to standards of living. Living without clean
drinking water, in close quarters without proper sanitation, living without a
toilet and without adequate nutrition and often without access to immediate and
preventative healthcare are all aspects of poverty in these developing
countries. All of these factors contribute to poor health and high rates of
infectious disease. How can we hope to rid of these diseases that have such
devastating effects?
The answer
that many organizations have is to treat
health problems. GlobeMed’s partner organizations’ however, are always looking
to prevent at the grassroots level.
Prevention is most key in this sense. By eradicating poverty and increase
living standards we are decreasing the risk for all of the diseases that are national
epidemics in the countries all the chapters work with.
The NGO I
worked with this summer’s main goal was to eradicate rural poverty in India.
They did this through a 5 pillar system: job creation, citizen and women
empowerment initiatives, education, health programs and the environment. There
is no better way to eradicate poverty than by attacking it at different angles.
While many of the NGOs our chapters’ work with focus on health, they are still
looking at the root of poverty. In many ways, this is simple: eradicate poverty
and improve health conditions.
So how can
we do this? One of the major things that struck me with the NGO I worked with
and with a lot different GlobeMed chapters it the commitment to sustainability.
There is no way we can eradicate poverty by simple donations- this is not
sustainable. We need to empower those living in poverty by creating jobs,
giving loans instead of just money, making sure affordable health care and education
is available to all and not just to those that can afford it. For example,
constructing toilets is a great thing in terms of improving health and living conditions.
But just giving a person a western toilet in a donation fashion will go to
waste. If, instead, we give them a loan to construct their own toilet, they are
not only more involved, but they are also more likely to use and take care of
it.
While
medical treatment, brigades and free care are also vital to improving health, we
will never get to the root of health problems in the developing world unless we
get to eradicating poverty and improving conditions. The grassroots organizations
GlobeMed works with are doing just that. That is why I am so happy to be a part
of this great organization truly making a difference in the world we live in.
