Lasting Takeaways and Reflections

The Rx One Health program reaffirmed why I want to do global health work. With so many inequities and problems in the world, I often reflect on how many obstacles there are to be able to address the problem, including but not limited to financial and political factors. These factors are not in our control, but we have to integrate them into our approaches. The case study on the bushmeat trade was one such issue that my cohort was tackled to discuss. It covered a wicked problem, which is a problem that is too complicated to solve because of its complexity. I remember feeling overwhelmed reading the prompt, analyzing the different stakeholders and the numerous environmental, health, and ethical issues that were raised. It did not help that we only had 10 minutes as a group to come up with an argument for the stakeholder we were representing. After each group presented their proposals and rebuttals, I felt more at ease. It was not because a compromise was reached, but due to the insight I gained hearing the different perspectives presented by each group. It made me reflect that although I may not have a solution for every problem I tackle in my field of work, I should not be deterred because the obstacle is the way. It is the way I will learn, and know more than if I had chosen to walk away from the problem.

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