Education

Learning Journey

My definition of health sciences has evolved and broadened significantly over the course of the program—From one sidedly seeing health as very biological, to appreciating it as very interdisciplinary and varied, with social, psychological, environmental, and systemic factors. Initially, I considered health science with emphasis on anatomy, physiology, and disease processes. While those foundations remain critical, I've learned to appreciate the importance of health equity, social determinants of health, as well as communication, cultural competency, and ethics functions in patient care.

Skills-wise, critical thinking, collaboration with peers, and patient-centered communication have had the most significant influence on me and my growth. Gaining skills in scientific research translation, budget creation, evaluation of interventions, evaluating areas, and communication between populations has made me a learned health care provider as well as a patient advocate.

Skill Development

During my time in the program, I’ve grown significantly as a communicator, group worker, problem solver, and innovator, both in academic and real-world settings. Group projects, presentations, case studies, and budget creations have pushed me to articulate complex health information clearly, adapt my language for different audiences, and listen actively in discussions and meetings. For instance, in an academic research group project on health disparities between Limited-English-Proficiency Spanish speaking Americans, I was required to research and integrate data, demonstrate findings in an effective yet efficient way, and make our message understandable to both scholars and the general public.

Challenges and Triumphs

One of the greatest challenges that I had to undergo in the course was integrating large workloads and projects from courses with my own personal commitments, particularly during times when the deadline coincided or when family and work responsibilities increased. Due to these circumstances, I was forced to adapt as a student and as a person, I had to learn to properly organize and plan for all my different tasks. This allowed me to minimize stress and consistently make gains without becoming exhausted or burned out.

Another area where I struggled was working with research assignments—specifically, finding good sources and learning to understand academic literature. Initially, I really struggled with distinguishing between high-quality, peer-reviewed articles and less credible, unreliable sources. Over the years, I learned how to utilize databases like PubMed and the IU library, whilst also learning techniques to tell when a source is credible or not.