Twenty-two students in the Spelman Health Careers Program recently spent two weeks studying health issues in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. During the trip, held May 22-June 3, students took classes and participated in clinical rotations at the University of the West Indies.
They also visited with the minister of health and a Parliament member for St. Joseph, the oldest town in the dual-island Caribbean nation. The excursion also was an opportunity to learn about island culture, while gaining insight into government policies to address health disparities, said biology major Jodian Grant, C’2018.
“I was able to develop a better understanding of how the government is able to provide citizens with free public health services and learn about various initiatives that are being launched to control the diabetes epidemic in the country,” Grant said. “I hope to utilize all that I have learned to further my research on health equity and access to quality healthcare in underdeveloped countries.”
Rosalind C. Gregory-Bass, M.D., C’92, Health Careers Program director and assistant professor in the environmental and health sciences program, and Alayna M. Blash, D.P.M., C’94, associate director of the Health Career Program, accompanied the students on the study abroad trip. The group’s visit also was highlighted in a recent article in Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.