Health is a Human Right on NPR

Paul Farmer has devoted his life to bringing health care to the poor

“…That goal is nothing less than the refashioning of our world into one in which no one starves, drinks impure water, lives in fear of the powerful and violent, or dies ill and unattended.”~ Dr. Paul Farmer

This week on NPR’s program “This I Believe” an essay was featured by my hero, Paul Farmer. You can read and/or listen to it here.

During my sophomore year in college I hit a wall. I was extremely overextended and, just like many college students, had a bit of a crisis. I was fortunate to have several professors who put me on track again. One lent me his copy of “Mountains Beyond Mountains” by Tracy Kidder. Now, five years later, I still look to Dr. Farmer for inspiration.

Paul Farmer is a physician and medical anthropologist based out of Harvard. He founded Partners in Health in 1987 after a hydroelectric project forced Haitian farmers off their land and onto infertile soil resulting in widespread malnutrition and suffering.

PIH uses a community based approach to bring free health care to the world’s poor. The group sets up clinics, rebuilds public health infrastructure, and trains community members to provide direct and indirect health care services. PIH does not do its work as an act of charity, but instead as one of outrage. Much time and passion is spent working on eradicating the root causes of disease such as poverty.

“…ill health, as we have learned again and again, is more often than not a symptom of poverty and violence and inequality — and we do little to fight those when we provide just vaccines, or only treatment for one disease or another.“ ~Dr. Paul Farmer

While the work of Dr. Farmer alone, cannot solve the world’s problems, it’s amazing the impact one person can have. Many classmates I’ve talked to have also been inspired by his work, leading them to choose a career in public health. He’s also contributed to a shift in public health perspective. The determinants of health are no longer limited to clean water and good nutrition. Instead the “upstream factors” such as poverty, government corruption, and power inequity are becoming the new targets of public health intervention.

If you, or someone you know is feeling burned out, I highly recommend “Mountains Beyond Mountains.” Having trouble figuring out what to give your boss at the holiday party? Consider donating to Partners in Health in their name.