Heart to Heart
The ICHA Blog
Dr. Miriam Padilla, M.D. graduated from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland Ohio. She now works at Venice Family Clinic, a free clinic servicing the west side of Los Angeles County. She has volunteered abroad working in clinics in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Dominican Republic. She has also volunteered in Mexico building schools, and travelled to El Salvador to learn about human rights injustices during their civil war. Miriam was born in Puerto Rico to parents who were also physicians and grew up in Rockville, Maryland.
In Ghana, Miriam will help in seeing patients and teaching health workers how to treat patients with chronic disease. She loves to travel and take part in outdoor adventures such as rock climbing, hiking, or white water rafting.
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Lessons from Elmina |
We went to Elmina to teach health workers about cardiovascular disease, and we left with new lessons for ourselves and our organization. One of the biggest lessons we took away from interacting with the health workers at Elmina Health Center was the enthusiasm and delight of learning something new or seeing things in a new light. The health workers at Elmina had such earnest interest in learning that it made the topics of cardiovascular disease even more exciting because of their energy. They brought insightful questions that made us realize that what seemed so concrete now has to be flexible enough to adjust to cultural interpretation. We realized that we could not simply say “You should not have salted fish and carbohydrates like cassava”. Since these are the main source of frugal nutrients, we had to stress moderation instead. One has to look at why their diet is composed of foods high in salt. If they had dependable electricity and refrigeration, they would not have to salt their fish so as to help preserve it. By this notion, we come to see how something as fundamental as electricity actually has a huge impact on the source of hypertension for many in Ghana.
Another lesson that we took away was the importance of taking care of others to your best capacity. Ghana has nationalized health care. Patients can choose to pay $15 a year to have health insurance. The insurance will cover for clinical consultations and medicines. Because infectious diseases are very prevalent in Ghana, one realizes that by providing medical care to others, they also are protecting themself from acquiring some of those infectious diseases. Therefore, one comes to acknowledge the value of providing healthcare to those who normally could not afford it. However, with more health insurance comes more patients. There has to be a system to encourage more health providers to work in villages and provide care in remote areas. The quality of patient care can be improved by decreasing the provider to patient ratio. If we increase the number of patients, we must also have ways of increasing the number of clinicians. These are lessons that seem very relevant in our out society as the health care debate continues.
Continue reading "Lessons from Elmina" » |
Empowerment |
We’re in Tijuana, Mexico. The sun reflects off the aluminum panels that make up the small makeshift homes, making the day appear hotter than it really is. As the sweat drips down my brow, I take a break from mixing the cement that will then become a classroom in this economically disadvantaged town. I look up, and in horror, I see a small kid drinking water from the same trashcan that we have been washing our shovels in after mixing the cement. I gasp and wonder, why would a child drink water from such a filthy and contaminated bucket? Either his thirst got the best of him, or he is simply used to drinking dirty water, or unaware of the danger that it could bring. Sadly, this is the case in many countries, the lack of health education and sanitary conditions, has led people to take unintended risks with their own lives. Many people, all over the world, tragically become ill from conditions that are preventable, or at least able to be modified with proper public health.
Take for instance chronic diseases like diabetes and hypertension. These medical conditions kill millions of people world wide each year. Although there are plenty of medicines to counteract some of the disabling side effect of these diseases, there are also many lifestyle changes the patient can do to ameliorate the risks. With proper nutritional education and exercise awareness, the patient can become empowered to take control of the disease. Their history does not have to be predetermined for them; they can prevent a heart attack or dialysis, if they are first given the educational tools necessary to then change their lives.
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About ICHA
The International Cardiovascular Health Alliance (ICHA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to promoting cardiovascular health in the developing world. ICHA works closely with local clinics and community organizations to provide knowledge and tools to prevent cardiovascular disease.
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