Emma Brofsky. Archived Student Stories Tanzania Summer Program 2012

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1 Gloria Appiah-Kubi Gloria eating breakfast with Tanzanian and Dutch medical students before starting their outreach program at a village near Machame, Tanzania. During the summer of 2012, Gloria Appiah- Kubi spent 8 weeks in Tanzania. She spent the first four weeks living with a homestay family in Moshi, Tanzania where she conducted a case study on obesity in periurban Moshi with medical students at the Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College (KCMC). For her case study, Gloria and her group members interviewed local villagers and urban workers to assess the community's perception of obesity and its adverse effects. Gloria and her group members presented the results of their case-study to the students and staff at KCMC at the end of the course. Gloria spent the following four weeks of her field experience interning at the Machame Lutheran Hospital at the village of Machame. As part of her internship, she spent time participating in hospital rounds with doctors and Tanzanian, Dutch, and United Kingdom medical students who were performing basic physical exams as well as patient reviews. Her time was divided between orthopedic surgeries, general surgeries, pediatrics, gynecology, obstetrics, and the ICU. Thursdays were spent conducting outreach in different villages with other medical students. During outreach Gloria had to the opportunity of taking blood pressure, administering basic physical examinations, offering medical advice to patients, and prescribing medications. When she had leisure time, Gloria visited the local primary school next to the hospital and played with the students, explored the Machame market and enjoyed the breathtaking view of Mount Kilimanjaro in her backyard! She is grateful to have formed such great relationships with everyone she met in Tanzania. Emma Brofsky Emma spent 8 weeks this summer living and learning in Moshi, Tanzania. During the first four weeks, she took a course at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College, in which she worked in a cross-cultural team to research and develop a case study on the role of the media in inadequate condom use by young adults in the Kilimanjaro region. She and her group members conducted interviews with

2 local media sources, health centers and young adults in urban and rural secondary schools. They also researched and suggested different policy options that could impact the current problem. For the second four weeks, Emma was an intern at KINSHAI, Kilimanjaro NGO Cluster for HIV/AIDS, STIs and Reproductive Health Interventions. She worked to create a newsletter with updates from the organization in the last year as well as helped out with other administrative projects. She was also able to do research for the development of a Cultural Tourism program for volunteers. A highlight from the internship portion of her experience was visiting a nursery school run by a group of eight women in a rural area for children who are orphans or have parents affected by HIV/AIDS. Emma had an incredible summer in Moshi. She was faced with many challenges and stepped outside of her comfort zone quite a bit but she values the experiences she had and the friendships she made. She became very close with her host family (pictured) and misses them very much. Becca Goldstein Becca is an anthropology major in the College if Arts and Sciences who had the privilege of participating in Cornell's Summer 2012 Global Health Program in Moshi, Tanzania. Becca spent the first four weeks at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College working on a public health research case study. Her group explored the Tanzanian media's influence on young adult condom use in the Kilimanjaro region, finding that the media is not used to its greatest potential to influence positive sexual health behaviors. For the second four weeks, Becca worked at the Gabriella Children's Rehabilitation Centre, an integrated primary school for children with disabilities. Becca and one other Cornell student, Esther, worked both directly with the children, assisting with occupational therapy and basic schoolwork, and on a more administrative level to help build the Centre's infrastructure. Throughout the summer, Becca lived in a homestay, and loved her Tanzanian family! Becca's favorite Tanzanian food was walii na maharage na mboga (rice, beans, and African spinach), she loved learning Kiswahili, and she feels fortunate to have made such close Tanzanian friends.

3 Leah Hellerstein Leah spent the summer after her sophomore year in Moshi, Tanzania. For the first four weeks she collaborated with fourth year medical students at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University and another Cornell student to write a policy case study about community prejudice against people with albinism. Writing the case study was incredible. They had the opportunity to interview various stakeholders, including politicians, doctors, and school children in Moshi. They also formed long-lasting friendships with their Tanzanian peers. During the second four weeks, Leah interned at an NGO called Building a Caring Community, which works with children with developmental disabilities and their families. She helped create a catalog and look for markets for the social business ran by some of the mothers of the children with disabilities. Leah also conducted health assessments, and worked with several of the children. During the week they were students, and during the weekends they took part in cultural learning. Leah spent time with her home-stay family and also did some traveling and went on safaris. Overall, this summer was invaluable, and she would love to return in the near future! Leah's favorite part of the program was the home-stay! This is a picture of Leah and her family celebrating her Baba's birthday. Esther Hoffman In the summer of 2012, Esther spent eight weeks living in Moshi, Tanzania. For the first four weeks of the experience, she worked with another Cornell student and two Tanzanian medical students at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College to develop a case study about the risky reproductive health practices of out-of-school adolescents in Moshi. Through on-site interviews of youths working in the streets and university public health researchers, she had a chance to explore many different perspectives of a complex issue. The next four weeks were spent volunteering at the Gabriella Rehab Centre, an integrated primary school for children with disabilities and those without, where she made friends with kids and helped with administrative work for the organization. She stayed with an amazing family the whole time she was in Tanzania, and she fell in love with ugali, a stiffened maize flower porridge

4 that is eaten with most meals. She learned kidogo (a bit of) Swahili by talking to different people throughout the whole trip, and her perspective of the world was highly broadened with each experience. Robert Nyumah Robert Nyumah spent eight weeks in two different parts of Tanzania. He was part of the Tanzania Global Heath Program that is divided into two four weeks sections. A class room section where all of the Cornell students were given the opportunity to write a Policy Case study together with fourth year medical students while learning more about the Tanzanian healthcare system and culture; and also an internship section of the student choosing. Robert spent the first four weeks of his experience in the urban city of Moshi in Northern Tanzania. During this class section, he spent a lot of time with Tanzanian medical students that thought him more about the culture and the local language of Kiswahili. The program also paired him with a Cornel student in order to decrease the feeling of loneliness within a new culture. The two of them lived together in a homestay that welcomed them and treated them as members of the family. During the second section of the program, Robert created and thought a computer class at a primary school within the rural village of Machame in Northern Tanzania together with a fellow Cornell Student. They also updated the health records of the students and assisted the school with their technological needs during their time in Machame. This was a reciprocal experience for Robert. He had little to offer but he came back from Tanzania with a better sense of what he wants to do with his life. He feels privileged for participating in this program and wants every student to be given the opportunity to study abroad.

5 Archived Student Stories Tanzania Summer Program 2012 Sarah Rastatter Sarah spent the summer of 2012 in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania. Her experience was split into two parts. During the first four weeks, Sarah lived in the town of Moshi at a home stay close to the Kilimanjaro Medical College. Here she studied with Tanzanian medical students. In a group of three Tanzanian students and one other Cornell student, they researched and wrote a policy case study on the Tanzanian formal sector health insurance plan and avenues to increase its utilization. Sarah formed irreplaceable relationships with her homestay family and Tanzanian colleagues all while gaining valuable insight into the field of global health and cross-cultural exchange. The second four weeks Sarah worked in the rural village of Machame at a primary school. She spent her time updating the school database, designing and teaching a computer class, relaying computer/typing skills to the teachers, recording height/weight and creating a student information database, typing and copying school exams, and interacting with and learning from the students during free time. The experience was the most defining during her time at Cornell and one that has shaped her future career interests and personal choices. Sara Spiro This summer Sara spent two incredible months in Moshi, Tanzania through Cornell University s global health program. In that time she studied global health and policy issues at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College (KCMC) and had an internship at a home for street children. As a student at KCMC, Sara had the opportunity to work in a small group of American and Tanzanian peers to prepare a policy case study. Her case study examined the abnormal social development of street children, and proposed increased government protection of children living or at risk of living on the street, and comprehensive developmental services to deal with the effects of abnormal socialization. At Msamaria Center for Street Children she participated in a wide variety of activities, and got a first-hand view of

6 how a locally run NGO operates. Her time was split between administrative activities and working directly with the children. Administrative activities included grant writing, organization of the children s records, updating the website, and creation of a newsletter. While working with the children she organized recreational and educational activities, provided one-on-one academic support, and taught basic health education. Sam Volkin Sam spent his summer in Moshi, Tanzania through Cornell's Global Health program. His first four weeks were spent taking a class on public health policy issues at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical College (KCMC). He, along with two other Cornell students and two Tanzanian medical students, coauthored a case study on the rising prevalence of obesity in peri-urban Moshi. He performed research by conducting literature reviews and going out in the field to interview local stakeholders like restaurant owners and physicians. Sam then presented his findings to the rest of the class and Cornell and KCMC faculty. Sam spent the remaining four weeks interning at an NGO called Kilimanjaro NGO Cluster on STI, HIV/AIDS and Reproductive Health interventions (KINSHAI). He helped the NGO reach out to donors and stakeholders by developing and editing a new brochure and newsletter. He also wrote several grant applications to fund their ongoing project of empowering the underprivileged population. When he wasn't doing administrative work, Sam traveled to popular attractions around Moshi to develop a Cultural Tourism program for the NGO. He visited waterfalls, traditional villages, caves, and coffee farms.