Spring semester!

March 22, 2023

Spring semester!

Wow did the time get away from me! I am just a week away from coursework ending. I cannot believe how fast the time went and how short the terms are here. I will be enjoying a break in April and will be back in May to complete exams and begin my dissertation. Independent dissertation writing is from June 15- August 15 and then I will be all finished! This program is very quick and packs a lot into the short year-long duration, however I feel like I have learned an incredible amount in this small period of time.

I will be exploring contraceptive supply chains in low and middle income countries for my dissertation. I haven't worked out the specifics yet, however I plan to explore how unmet need for contraception caused by supply chain issues can impact contraceptive autonomy, which is the ability for a woman to choose to use contraception and for it to be easily available to her when she wants it. I have been completing a consulting project as part of my coursework with GAVI, an organization that works to establish partnerships to distribute and strengthen vaccine supply chains and enhance vaccine coverage around the world. Working with this organization inspired my interest in global health supply chains which led me to my dissertation topic combining this new interest with my existing passion for maternal and child health. The project I worked on for GAVI was fascinating; a group of four other students and I explored how medical students can be used to distribute HPV vaccines in low income countries to fill the human resource gap within the medical field. This idea is a win win as medical students have opportunities for increased clinical and hands-on learning experiences while vaccine coverage rates are improved. GAVI wanted us to research this after seeing medical students distribute the Covid-19 vaccine throughout the pandemic and figured this doesn't have to be just something that happens in crisis. Once the report is finalized, I will be sure to link it for you all to read if interested. I had a lot of fun working with my team and working with a major player in the global health world. I finally felt like I was able to put what I was learning in the classroom into practice.

Otherwise, I have been enjoying my two other courses, Sexual and Reproductive Health Intervention and Evaluation (SRH) and Forced Migration and Refugees (FMR). In FMR, we have learned a lot about different theories surrounding refugee resettlement, the role of the UN in resettlement, and how refugee camps are established and managed. In SRH we have learned about how sexual and reproductive health programs can be evaluated and what needs to be done to increase support for specific populations like refugees or people with disabilities. The two courses along with the consulting project have gone together quite well and have made me feel prepared to take on a career within these issues and working with these populations.

This week, I presented to the Marylebone Rotary Club about refugee resettlement at their meeting. It was exciting to share what I have been learning about to a new audience. I joined a few members for lunch and heard about how they became involved in the club and what they liked most about being a Rotarian. I am waiting to be sent pictures from my presentation and will upload them when I receive them! Next week, I am attending a dinner hosted by one of the London Clubs with all the scholars here, I am excited to reconnect with some of the other scholars I met last term.

Other than school work, I have continued to travel when I have the chance, spending time soaking up the sun in Seville, Spain which was much needed after my first London winter and visiting a friend from Elon in Tours, France where she is teaching English. She also met me and some other Elon friends in Dublin for St. Patricks Day last weekend, truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience to spend the holiday in Ireland with my incredible friends. My dad also made it over for a visit in February which was so fun to show him all the places I have discovered, truly feeling like a local finally!

Additionally, I attended the Elon in London Alumni Chapter's Elon Day Event. On March 7, Elon hosts a day of giving and all the alumni chapters gather in their respective cities to celebrate Elon. I met some very nice alums from the Class of 2015 who have all become friends since living in London. It provided a nice little piece of home all the way across the pond.