Alumni
Course: 2023-2024
Medical doctor graduated in 2022, now training as a Public Health resident at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan. As a first-year resident, I have been involved in: infection prevention and control in hospital settings, particularly in the prevention of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) through healthcare workers’ awareness, hand-hygiene-adherence audits in hospital, and in the surveillance of HAIs through Point Prevalence Survey; vaccinations: by participating in activities and meetings of the Italian NITAG, where Italian national vaccination policies are defined; research into the Italian National Health System and health policies in Italy.
Global health has been fascinating to me since I was introduced to this discipline as a medical student; I particularly appreciated the multi-disciplinary approach and the transnational perspective on health issues. Moreover, I share its goals, which include understanding and studying Global Health problems, developing evidence-based strategies to address them, and contributing to improve the health of populations and promoting greater health equity.
I enjoy traveling, learning about different cultures, engaging with people and I aspire to conduct research and work in a Global Health institution, so that my work can contribute to programs aimed at a positive impact on Global Health
“My primary goal when enrolling in this master’s program was to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to work in the field of Global Health. At this point, I believe I have developed foundational knowledge to understand and address the main global health issues. Since I began, I feel I have sharpened my critical thinking ability particularly regarding the burden of disease and the impact of socio-economic, environmental, and political determinants of health. Furthermore, through a hands-on approach with various assignments, I believe I have developed highly valuable skills to enter the field of Global Health, namely in evaluating epidemiological data and evidence, evaluating and developing policies, and assessing and implementing appropriate and effective interventions to address national and transnational health issues. Additionally,
I believe I am improving some soft skills such as presentation and argumentation, both orally and in writing, and the ability to work in groups and engage with individuals from diverse educational backgrounds and different parts of the world. I consider these skills important for working in an international context, as I aspire to in the future.
Moreover, I have met the expectation of getting to know, collaborating with, and building relationships with other passionate individuals working in the field of Global Health, both professors and students, with whom I can stay in touch in the future.
My future engagement in Global Health
In recent months, I have focused on my interest in engaging in policy making in the field of Global Health. In particular, through assignments, I have realized that I enjoy analyzing epidemiological data and evidence and producing evidence-based recommendations and policies as a starting point for designing the most appropriate and effective interventions. I have found that I am particularly interested in infectious diseases’ issues. Another realization I’ve had is that among Public Health specialists in Italy, there is generally limited awareness of Global Health as a discipline. In fact, speaking with colleagues, I have found that it is often perceived as an abstract discipline with unclear objectives, besides having a perspective on health issues mostly focused on the national context. For this reason, I would like to play a role in spreading awareness of Global Health among Public Health specialists.
In these months, I have come to understand that working in the field of Global Health is what I want to do in life because it interests and excites me; therefore, I want to continue learning to become a competent individual. I have realized that there is a need for competent and motivated professionals to tackle the upcoming challenges in global health: goals to achieve (i.e., SDGs agenda 2030), significant health inequalities to reduce, and research to be conducted to produce the necessary evidence to guide policies and develop interventions. Furthermore, I am motivated to continue this educational journey by the professors I have met, who are enthusiastic and knowledgeable, and by my colleagues whose questions and reflections during classes and group discussions always stimulate me to think and develop my own point of view. Additionally, I am very motivated to continue the master’s program to have the opportunity to do an internship this summer and to develop my research project and thesis.
I am very satisfied with the path I have chosen. Soon, I would like to work in an institution/organization that deals with Global Health. Therefore, after completing the master’s program, as part of my specialization in Public Health, I would like to plan an internship at an institution/organization that focuses on Global Health to further develop the skills I have acquired so far and to finally put them into practice to contribute with my work to concrete projects with a positive impact on global health. It is still unclear to me which institution/organization I should approach first, and which position best matches my expectations/skills. I will seek advice on these matters.