Reducing disparities: Delivering needed supplies to underserved communities

Before the beginning of my Health Corps experience, I had very little knowledge of public health. I took a few courses in my undergraduate that explained health disparities and larger global health issues, but nothing more than you can read in any book. But now, several months later, I can truly say that Health Corps has provided me with a service-learning opportunity that has allowed me to gain firsthand experience and knowledge of the severe health gaps that affect populations both globally and locally.

At Global Links we focus on providing hospitals and clinics both internationally and domestically with the proper resources needed to give the best health care possible. As a volunteer supervisor and community partner associate, I work with volunteers to package and prepare medical supplies to send to partner hospitals internationally. As the community partners associate I get to interact with local organizations focusing on providing care to the underserved and under resourced within Pittsburgh. In being involved with both of these aspects of Global Links I feel privileged to empower the community to get things done and serve our larger community, and I’m also able to witness the other side of things—the reason why 14,000 volunteer hours are dedicated to close health gaps.

Global Links specifically focuses on providing the resources that will help health systems run smoothly. For the most part these resources are medical supplies, and sometimes food and other items. But in being able to see this, I now have a much better understanding of the underlying factors that are causing such huge health gaps domestically and internationally. These factors are simply the overall lack of resources for the underserved communities. Whether it is food, supplies, housing, education, or capital, resources are the basis of the major public health issues. And without these resources access to proper health care is limited.

In fighting to combat the lack of resources, I’ve had the opportunity to see how, internationally, there are countries where individuals die for what we throw away here in the United States.  Closer to home, there are also people within the United States that die because of what others dispose of as well. Within Pittsburgh there are communities that are underserved and under resourced causing health gaps and inequalities. And this has been the most eye-opening lesson as well as my motivation in the last several months. The National Health Corps Pittsburgh as well as Global Links has taught me that we have to care for all these communities that are underserved. If there are not people out their willing to advocate for these communities, their voices will be unheard, and the health gaps will only grow more. Because of this amazing service learning experience I now truly understand the major issues within public health. And also because of this service learning experience the underserved communities I aim to help now have one additional voice to advocate and care for them. I encourage many other people who are interested in health professions and public health to share my experience, the more individuals we can get educated on the important public health problems, the more of an impact we can make on closing the present health gaps both locally and globally.