Youth Are a Fundamental Force for Change in Global Health

Youth are a Fundamental Force for Change in Global Health Posted By admin On June 15, 2012 @ 2:22 pm In Issue 2: Global Health In our increasingly globalised world, the local and national health challenges which medical professionals tackle on a daily basis cannot be disengaged from their global context. Today’s medical professionals face: health threats which transcend national borders; patients who can, and do, travel the world overnight; and diverse, multicultural societies – trends which are only increasing.

If doctors of the twenty-first century want to care effectively for their individual patients and local community, then they must study and impact upon not only local and national health issues, but also the broader determinants of well-being and the global frameworks which shape the lives of each and every one of us.

None of this will come as a surprise to you. Young people across the world are as familiar with the concepts of globalisation as they are with the use of Facebook. We are the generation with the Coca-Cola logo imprinted upon our brain. We are the generation who, through television, buy into all of Hollywood’s ideals. We are the generation with technology that connects us with those on the other side of the world at a drop of a hat. All these factors have implications for healthcare. And this fact makes sense to us in a way that those who have grown up before globalisation often fail to grasp. This understanding, our passion, and our credibility as the generation who will have to deal with the outcomes of current policy all place us in a unique position to implement change in global health.

But how? As joint president of Medsin-UK, the UK’s Student Global Health network, I have seen hundreds – probably thousands – of students and junior doctors fired up by the injustices which face our troubled world. ‘But I’m young, inexperienced, and idealistic!’ they tell me, ‘What can I do?’ Not only can we do a lot, but we already are.

Young people across the world are educating themselves about global issues using extra-curricular means. The International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), which represents 1.2 million medical students, facilitates rigorous international training courses and its member organisations run events such as conferences, debates and journal clubs 1.

Young professionals are changing antiquated medical curricula to incorporate teaching about the global context of healthcare. In the UK, University College London (UCL) students approached their Dean in 1999, and since UCL’s intercalated BSc (iBSc) in 2001 2, similar advocacy by students across the country has increased the number of iBScs to 8. Students also played a key role in calling for the inclusion of a “global health outcome” into the 2009 edition of Tomorrow’s Doctors 3 and in the publishing of a proposed global health curriculum 4. Transforming medical training in this way will provide young doctors with the skills they need to face the challenges of modern medical practice.

Youth are engaging political processes that shape our world and planning interventions which make a difference even at an international level, such as a range of measures at COP17 in Durban and campaigns such as Root Out, Reach Out at the 2011 World Conference on Social Determinants of Health5.And we can take action, on local, national and international levels. Locally, young people have often led the way in volunteering in their local community with projects such as Crossing Borders; a group which works with refugees to improve their healthcare. This is a trend senior doctors might do well to follow as an expression of their moral contract to society and a way to build public trust and gain a better understanding vulnerable members of the community 6. Internationally, IFMSA facilitates both clinical and research-based student exchanges, enabling students to learn about the global context of healthcare.

I’ve just returned from two weeks in Ghana at the March Meeting of the IFMSA. Gatherings such as these, which bring together up to 1,200 students from 101 nations, are a powerful reminder that students everywhere are affected by these issues, and that students everywhere are implementing change. Each one of us is young, relatively inexperienced, and idealistic. But we use these factors to drive us. The people who change this world are not those who let their imperfections and inadequacies get in the way. They are not those who wait. They are the people who despite their flaws, despite their lack of experience and despite their inadequacies are taking action, and are taking it now.

Every young person can train themselves and take action. Together, we can create a movement strong enough to not only challenge the building blocks of global injustice, but to bring them tumbling down. Together, we can be the fundamental force for change in global health.

1. Novak S. Taking a More Holistic Approach to Global Health Education. The New York Times [Internet]. 2012 Feb 19 [cited 2012 Mar 22]; Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/world/europe/20iht-educlede20.html 2. Yudkin JS, Bayley O, Elnour S, Willott C, Miranda JJ. Introducing medical students to global health issues: a Bachelor of Science degree in international health. The Lancet. 2003 Sep;362(9386):822–4.

3. Tomorrow’s Doctors online (2009) [Internet]. [cited 2012 Mar 22]. Available from: http://www.gmcuk.org/education/undergraduate/tomorrows_doctors_2009.asp 4. Johnson O, Bailey SL, Willott C, Crocker-Buque T, Jessop V, Birch M, et al. Global health learning outcomes for medical students in the UK. The Lancet [Internet]. 2011 Oct [cited 2012 Mar 22]; Available from: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(11)61582-1/fulltext 5. Guinto RLL, Yore D, Habibullah NK, de Leon AM, Tillman T, Elliott-Green A, et al. Students’ perspective on rooting out causes of health injustice. The Lancet. 2011 Dec;378(9808):e20–e21.

6. Earnest MD, et. al. Physician Advocacy: What is It and How Do We Do It? Academic Medicine. 2010 Jan; 85(1): 63-67.

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