Thank you all for playing a role in getting me to this point, where I am graduating with my master’s in public health. Thank you for letting me talk through public health issues and for letting me ramble about theoretical studies I designed for class projects. Also, thank you for letting me complain about my classes and how tired I was balancing a full-time workload with medical school applications and my courseworks these past three years.

 

I feel very blessed. This degree means so much to me, and now that I am about to graduate is when the real work starts for me as a public health professional. Almost ten years ago, on a medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic, I saw healthcare providers try to help their communities in local hospitals without running water, consistent electricity, staff, and essential materials. As an aspiring pre-med student at the time, this broke my heart and helped me see that I wanted to have an impact beyond the medical encounter.

 

I am getting closer to where I want to be to help improve the health of these communities. I want to celebrate my graduation by honoring where it all began, a rural public hospital in the Dominican Republic. This July, I will be in the Motherland again. I want to donate much-needed basic medical supplies to public hospitals in Moca, Dominican Republic, and surrounding areas in need. In place of a graduation gift, please consider contributing to this personal project. I am already in contact with local hospital administrators, physicians, and patients to generate a list of medical supplies that would be the most helpful. I will continue to post updates here as I work out the specific details and will keep the donations page up until July 1st. Any amount helps!