My Journey into Public Health

I often reflect on my journey in Public Health. I think about the unconventional path I took, the amazing people I have met, the opportunities that came about, and the people I have lost along the way. Yes, I have lost some amazing people who tirelessly advocated for equity, people whom I admire and will never forget. My community who stood alongside me taught me about the importance of inclusivity, acceptance, and resilience, My community taught me the art of listening and trust are two things you must learn to succeed. I will never take for granted the pathway I am on and I will ensure I pay it forward always!??

I started my career with an urgency to teach and be the best Health Educator I could be at the time with the resources provided to me. Besides, you come out of undergraduate, during my time wanting to become a health educator it was your #PublicHealth rite of passage. Starting out as a Nutrition Educator was eye-opening! The inequities in our communities because of the lack of resources were overwhelming. People wanted to do the right thing, eat the right food, and incorporate healthy habits into their lifestyles but some did not know how or honestly, that was not at the top of their “to do.” There were people trying to stay alive, afford necessities, and function in a system that was made to break them. Looking back, there is not much difference now, however, the slow and steady strides are evident. As Nutrition educators, we were tasked to go into schools, rehabilitation centers, clinics, hospitals, and daycare centers to provide nutrition education in areas that were resource restraint and faced enormous inequities i.e. food deserts, violence, high rates of poverty wrapped up in a system that was broken in communities that were forgotten. I was young, na?ve, and learned very quickly that to assist my community I needed to learn about my community and meet people where they wanted to be met—-I had to do less talking and more listening. I enjoyed learning about people and their wants, needs, and ideas and listening to their interpretations of health. I took the time to listen and learn from them and provide resources based on what THEY told me they needed. At the time my supervisor provided us with the ability to incentivize our program. This was so important because time is precious and if I am taking your time, I need to respect that time and assist in any way possible.??

We meet people where they want to be met but we also respect their time and ensure they were provided gift cards, transport passes, food, information, and support but most valuable? A space to be heard. I learned a lot while working as an Educator, it piqued my interest however to really get to the root cause of environmental health and food safety, how can I educate on resources that are lacking, ok you can know how to read these food labels but the food is expired in most cases, unhealthy OR…. nonexistent. Let us face it, we must have tactics in place for our communities to thrive in systems that were in place for them not to. Sad reality. That was my AHA! I lead by listening which was one of my very first opportunities for community impact. Our grant funding was ending and I was provided an opportunity to work as a Health Inspector through the City of Philadelphia. ?

?

WOW! I spent 4 years inspecting food establishments, centers, schools, facilities, daycare centers, pools, vending machines (yes), churches, and homes. This was community and we were tasked with food protection and sustainable solutions to food-borne illnesses but honestly, my job was community engagement. Being the Educator that I am, I found a way to link education and inspection and worked with my community on the WHY: Why is it important for us to handle food properly, the impact of food deserts, how can we incorporate healthier options in neighborhood markets, mom and pop shops, bodegas, etc that have limited healthy food options? WHY sanitization was imperative to limit food bone illnesses and viruses. Working in a government role assisted us in helping our community— We had the ear of our administrators and commissioner. We shared what we observed and provided feedback on how to enhance our skills. This was my take on health and learning from the community in which I served and vice versa. Full circle moment.?

?I enjoyed my job and took in all that I could learn about my community and what was needed. I would go on to be a Program Manager in HIV/Oncology/Diabetes, Kidney Health, Sexual Health, Trauma-Informed Care, and Violence Prevention. Roles that I enjoyed and took me to places I could never have imagined. I was granted opportunities to implement educational initiatives and measure their impact, met some great people, served some amazing people, and found out very quickly I needed to be where the decisions are being made on community mobilization and engagement. You see working for the community is one thing, fulfilling grant requirements is another—-WHO was setting these requirements and how do they know what’s best, research aside you need people who have worked in the community. I did my research and kept my ear to the ground.?

?A couple of years later, I was offered the opportunity to Manage Clinical Research Programs and work with some of the most amazing talents, all the while championing public health education and it is importance to improve patient outcomes. Enrolling people into clinical trials, understanding the opportunities and flaws in study design, connecting participants, and PEOPLE to resources, and having knowledge exchange with the principal investigators and team were utterly amazing.??

?The most amazing thing was that each position provided me with the opportunity for growth and lessons learned to transfer into the next role.??

?For those of you working for Public Health nonprofit programs, we know once the grant ends most of the time so does our position. Learning and adapting to this can be stressful but so rewarding at the same time—-you are able to take your skills and transfer them because once you are passionate about one disease area, Public Health focus, you are going to be passionate about another. I took in all I could and connected with as many people as I could. I will never forget the moment I learned about an opportunity to work in an industry I have always heard about but did not know too many Public Health Community Professionals that ventured into this space, Pharmaceuticals.??

?I thought to myself: Will this allow me to stay connected to the community? How will venturing into this space be perceived by my public health peers, (So REWARDING- “Big Pharma”- we will discuss in another post), how can I champion this Public Health work in an industry that was so heavily regulated? Could I still see patients, work on amazing projects, and be able to analyze program impact? Would I be happy?? Listen, not only was I able to do all those things and more but I was connected to a community of passionate individuals, experts, and resources to make an impact. IMPACT! Passion and Purpose lead me to this field. Passion and Purpose will take you extremely far. Passion and Purpose have continued to be my driving force and have taken me far, thus far.?"We have to look at Public Health as the destination, through inequities and systematic entanglements, it is only through this lens you will see what can, what must, and what needs to be achieved".

?As I take you all on a journey with me, one of self-discovery, advocacy, and the importance of knowing your WHY, you will understand how one opportunity can propel your life beyond your wildest dreams.??

?

STAY TUNED……..?

?