Global health in action
The UF in Haiti Study Abroad Program offers undergrads a unique opportunity to gain global health skills
By Julie Walter
The days started with breakfast as a group, and then a bumpy 30-minute van ride through rough dirt roads leading them to a hard day of work in the field in Haiti. Together with a Haitian enumerator, University of Florida undergraduate students asked the Haitian community a question that desperately needed an answer: To what extent are water and hygiene behaviors mediated by water insecurity and cultural beliefs in Haiti?
It was all part of a new UF educational initiative to enhance international curriculum and experiences for undergraduate students, supported by a grant from UF’s International Center and developed by faculty members in the College of Public Health and Health Professions’ department of environmental and global health, including Elizabeth Wood, D.H.S., Anthony Maurelli, Ph.D., Jocelyn Widmer, Ph.D., Joseph Bisesi, Ph.D., and department chair Tara Sabo-Attwood, Ph.D.
Student Mockelaux Bonzongo collects a water sample.
After a lot of planning and hard work, the first UF in Haiti Study Abroad Program group traveled to Gressier, Haiti, for a four-week experience in May 2018. The focus of the trip was to use qualitative and quantitative research methods to learn about residents’ experience with water insecurity, water quality and women’s health.
Led by Wood and Ph.D. student Kelly Chapman, the eight undergraduate students underwent a week of orientation, conducted surveys and then completed qualitative ethnography interviews with the assistance of Haitian enumerators and translators. In the final week , students also worked with Bisesi to learn how to sample water for measurement of basic water quality, heavy metals and organic contaminants. The goal was for the students to learn a problem from different angles and to train them to take information and synthesize it in the field.
“You want to understand the stories behind it: the perceptions, the attitudes and the practices,” said Wood, the director of the college’s Bachelor of Public Health program.
As the UF in Haiti program director, Wood focused on helping her students develop cultural competency; she wanted them to be immersed in Haitian culture where everything is drastically different, and the students were forced to see things from a different perspective. She also wanted them to be able to learn to think critically and analytically when things don’t go according to plan.
During their time in Haiti, the students learned to speak the basics of Haitian Creole and worked together as a team. They learned about the community in a rare and immersive way. Mockelaux Bonzongo, a student who went on the trip, recalls the importance of taking the time to learn the people.
“The biggest thing I learned is how important it is to take the time to get to know the community you are researching in, and the importance of learning about the culture to get a greater sense of the people,” Bonzongo said.
As a public health major, Bonzongo was able to put the lessons she learned in a classroom into action. She recalls feeling empowered. Unlike most students, she did not have to wait until she was in a professional field to practice her skills. The experience also helped to solidify her choice to pursue a master’s in public health.
Student Geneve Simeus was born in the northern part of Haiti and going back to her native country to help with such a pressing issue as water insecurity has always been a part of her dream. Simeus learned how crucial it is to work together as a team. The days were not easy — there were a lot of obstacles and tribulations — but at the end of the day, the team pulled together and put the work in.
Caitlyn Parente, a sophomore chemistry major, felt proud that they were able to look into a problem that wasn’t just important to the students but also the local community. Water quality and women’s health are topics that the Haitian community specifically asked the team to look into. Through the household survey, the group tried to get a better understanding of the knowledge, attitudes and practices surrounding water and water usage in the households. Through the water sampling, students learned more about waterborne contaminants that may impact community health.
“Their long term health is our goal,” Parente said.
Haitian Creole language tutor and neighborhood friend Bernard “Dadou” Evans, Kelly Chapman and Robinson Bernier.
Robinson Bernier was the Haitian enumerator who accompanied the team as they ventured out into the community to talk to people about their water usage practices. His responsibilities included making sure the students were safe, driving them to their locations and teaching them basic Haitian Creole along the way.
“My favorite part about the group is their sincerity and their sense of friendship,” Robinson said. “I learned a lot about their personalities, culture, beliefs and knowledge. We also got to exchange ideas about public health.”
Chapman and Wood never seemed to fatigue and were always positive, the students said. From putting inspirational notes in the students’ lunch boxes to comforting them when the distance started to seem too far, each student said their guidance made the trip truly memorable.
“Dr. Wood was so supportive and such a great leader. She was definitely the one who made this trip as great it was,” Bonzongo said.
Be a part of the next UF in Haiti Study Abroad program
Applications for the 2019 program are being accepted until January 28