While studying abroad during the pandemic, “flexible” has been my theme word. With unknown circumstances and ever changing plans, we had to be patient and flexible with our courses, our housing, and our trips. The biggest disappointing change our program had to make was cancelling homestays; I was so excited to be immersed in the culture by living with a local family. After finding out I would be living in a hotel with my classmates for 14 weeks, I was worried about how I would meet locals and further immerse myself into the language and culture. Fortunately, with the many contacts I had from friends and family in the States and the contacts I made during my Independent Study Project, I haven’t had much trouble meeting locals.
One of the most interesting Ecuadorians I have met this semester has been a friend named Denisse. At the beginning of my study project my advisor put me in contact with Denisse to conduct an interview, the main method of our projects, because she was very knowledgeable about my topic. Denisse works for an international nonprofit organization that brings humanitarian aid to people in situations of mobility in Ecuador. Our first time meeting was for the interview, which was in a cute little coffee shop near her house. She impressed me with the breadth of her knowledge, experience, and passion for the migrant community. We kept in touch and a few weeks after that she took me to observe the work that her organization does at the northern border of Ecuador in a city called Tulcán.
While we had to leave for Tulcán at 06:00 in the morning, I was excited to be going with her to observe her work and her role in the public health system. When we arrived to Tulcán we had breakfast and we took the time to get to know each other a little bit better; Denisse is a medical doctor and holds a Master of Public Health as well. In her role with her organization she manages projects, which includes organizing people and resources. Later we went to the Center for Integral Support for Migrants, which is where the clinic her organization was in charge of was located. There I watched her staff provide basic health assessments for migrant families who came in needing assistance and observed the compassion with which they cared for the patients. I also got to sit in on a meeting Denisse had with the Minsterio de Salud Pública and her extended team of doctors and nurses in health centers all over the city. This really opened my eyes to the functioning of public health in real time–something that I haven’t had the opportunity to see before.
The thing that was especially impactful from my time with Denisse was when we had a little bit of time between meetings. We went to the local market and got some fresh juice and a buñelo, which is a a fried dough fritter. In the market we sat and talked about the work she was doing and all of the other roles that she had held during her career. Her roles had varied from a project coordinator in the government sector, to a college professor for a Master of Public Health program, to her current role as a project manager in an international nonprofit. As I am trying to figure out exactly the role I want to have in the public health field after earning my MPH, this conversation allowed me to see that there is room to explore different roles and different sectors while making an impact.
When getting in our taxi to ride back to Quito, I thanked her for giving me this experience; it was truly one of the coolest things I got to do during the semester and it gave me so much perspective. I told Denisse, “quiero ser como tú cuando yo crezca,” meaning I want to be like you when I grow up. Denisse truly inspired me and not only gave me a closer look into my topic of research, but also gave me a closer look into what my future career in public health could look like.