This past summer, another cohort of multidisciplinary students from diverse program areas – including maternal and child health, epidemiology, global health, public health practice and social work, among others – has undertaken a lifetime learning experience courtesy of the USF College of Public Health.

For the past three summers, Drs. Arlene Calvo and Cheryl Vamos, faculty in the Department of Community and Family Health, have co-led a summer elective course, International Perspectives on Women’s Health. Grounded in human rights and theory-based frameworks, this mixed-format course begins with online learning and discussions of factors influencing women’s health among different regions of the world and culminates with an eight-day field visit in Panama. This seminar-style course allows students to have first-hand experiences with regard to geographical, historical, political, economic, social, cultural, biomedical, and environmental factors that influence critical issues affecting women’s health.

 

This year while in Panama, students learned about and participated in discussions with a variety of institutions and organizations:

• Santa Ana Health Center (community health center serving commercial sex workers)
• APLAFA (Panamanian Association for Family Planning)
• PROBIDSIDA (HIV/AIDS non-profit agency)
• Pro-Ed (non-profit organization working on school education)
• Maternity ward at the Santo Tomas Hospital (Panama’s largest public hospital)
• Calicanto (community-based organization that delivers award-winning psychological and professional development skills to at-risk women, such as those who are from abusive relationships or who have participated in gang activity)
• Emberá community (an indigenous community)

 

During both the online and field study portions of the class, students discuss topics such as violence, discrimination, poverty, education, human rights, female genital mutilation, human trafficking, childhood marriage, early pregnancy, refugee situations, and aging through the lifespan.

“This course has been the best I have taken so far at USF,” said Shana Geary, who is studying for a dual degree master’s degree in maternal and child health and epidemiology. “It has opened my eyes to so many issues that women must face.  I previously thought the fight for women’s equality was almost won, but the material we have learned has helped me to better understand the needs of women globally. It was easy to distance myself from tough women’s health issues such as sex trafficking, early marriage and others, considering them to be something that happens ‘over there.’ This class has made me realize that these problems aren’t ‘their issues,’ but that as women, they belong to us all.

“There is great importance in highlighting the injustices that women face considering how much untapped potential exists in the oppressed women around the world, and the substantial impact these injustices have on the health of women and society as a whole. In the future, I will know to look at the larger picture of what could contribute to negative health outcomes and the importance of empowering women in efforts to improve health.”

The course has been a rewarding and emotional experience that continues to open the doors for international collaborations in both academic and research endeavors for faculty and students. This program also has helped COPH students find innovative and meaningful field experiences and special projects in Panama. For example, this past year alone, there are five students conducting their international field experience while working with a variety of Panamanian health and research institutions, such as APLAFA, the Gorgas Memorial Institute and PROBIDSIDA, among others.

 

For more information about the International Perspectives on Women’s Health course, contact Dr. Cheryl Vamos at cvamos@health.usf.edu.

Photos courtesy of Drs Calvo and Vamos.