Final reflection

Steeven Toor
April 21st 2017

Overall this class was an amazing experience for me and I learned a lot
throughout the entire semester! I also realized that not only did I encounter
new concepts and ideas, I was also building on my existing health and
society knowledge throughout the semester as well. I had previously come
across concepts such as social determinants of health and public health
principles, but revisiting these concepts from a global health lens helped me
establish a fuller and more comprehensive understanding of these concepts.
An example of this was when we made the distinction between
multidisciplinary, transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary. I had these terms
several times before this class but was still confused from time to time and
would have to search up the term I was using to confirm if I was using it in
the right context. There was an example used in class that was about the
multiple fruits in one basket, fruit salad and fruit smoothie that really helped
me understand the differences between the three terms. The example of
multidisciplinary was the one where the fruits were all placed in the same
basket but were still separate from each other. This example was referring to
the definition of multidisciplinary, because its when you bring different
disciplines together to work together, but they are still their own entity and
work on specific things varying discipline to discipline. The second fruit-
related example was related to an interdisciplinary approach, where fruits
are cut up and put in a salad and the fruit starts to take on the taste of other
fruits. This relates to the the cross-pollination of ideas and one discipline
influencing another discipline. The final example was how a transdisciplinary
approach then could be represented by a fruit smoothie, where you take all
the fruits and turn them into something completely new. In a similar sense,
you are bringing everyone together and then use one approach or lens
together to look at one issues, where all disciplines are willing to transform. I
think this was one of the biggest aha moments for me personally throughout
the entirety of my journey in health and society 591. I was able to apply this
knowledge throughout the various papers and articles I was reading and
when critiquing whether the initiative was multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary
or transdisciplinary. For my personal learning objectives as well, I had several
aha moments where I was applying the core competencies and global health
principles in a practical setting and was realizing how applicable this
knowledge really was. As I was exploring the concept of social determinants
of heath and accessibility and technology, I was applying a cultural
competency lens from the core competencies we learned. The examples we
examined through the ted talk videos and other class content was very
insightful for me as I got a sense for how countries were aiding others in the
global community previously and how it wasnt always constructive, positive
or helpful. For example, the ted talk video we watched on how we have
thrown billions of dollars at Africa but it has been counterproductive because
the people trying to make a difference were ignorantly trying to apply their
personal way of being onto a land and people where it was not compatible.
This notion that westerners come to a third world country and act like they
know what to do and how to do it to make things better is a common theme I
think weve seen and Ive learned it actually doesnt help and is
counterproductive. From here there stemmed some of the concepts we
learned, such as capacity building and establishing equitable partnerships
that are culturally competent. That you really have to understand how a
different community might function and recognize that it might not be
exactly how you are used to functioning and living. Social norms might be
completely different and what is okay in your nation might be totally wrong
in this different community. Therefore, it would bode well to take the time to
research and understand the local culture and society of where you are
working to implement a change. Building capacity and meaningful
relationships is a key component and take away message for me. These
concepts seemed to link to one another to me and fit in well together when
analyzing a global health initiative through a core competency lens. For
example, the core competency of cultural competency can be used to create
an equitable partnership or for capacity building. In our efforts to make the
world a better place, we need to understand that we come from different
places with different ways of thinking and being and in order to work
collectively with one another we need to come from a genuine place of
understanding and willingness to work with one another. There needs to be
an acceptance of different views and recognition that we need to work with
other communities and understand them (such as working with community
leaders). Overall, the core competencies and global health principles inform
us how global health initiatives should be implemented and should be used
as a guideline for future projects and initiatives.