Interview With NGO Manager

The following interview conducted was with Maria Geis, a Quality Assurance fellow of “Reach out Mbuya” a grassroots NGO situated in the capital of Uganda, in Kampala. Maria became a part of Reach Out Mbuya, as a post from her fellowship from Global Health Corps (GHC).

Global Health Corps in liaison with Yale University Department of Global Health, serves as yearlong fellowship for young professionals of diverse backgrounds to serve on the frontlines of the fight for global health equity at already existing health organizations and government agencies. In particular, fellows are currently working in east African countries that have been plagued with a variety of mass healthcare inequality such as in Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Malawi and Zambia. Fellows can also be associated as in house liasons in the United States as well. Fellows have a measurable impact on the health of the communities in which they work, and draw upon their own experiences and the GHC alumni network to heighten their impact throughout their careers

The principal mission of GHC is to mobilize a global community of emerging leaders and helps construct the global movement of health equity. GHC believes that a global movement of individuals and organizations fighting for improved health outcomes and access to healthcare for the poor is crucial to change the status quo of extreme inequity.

Furthermore, GHC recruits placement organizations involved in exceptional work in improving healthcare access and initiatives in disadvantaged communities. Placement organizations vary from small grassroots organizations to large global institutions (UNICEF, WHO, Clinton Health Access Initiative, etc) to Ministries of Health. Examples of some of the outcomes of this fellow...

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...Global Health?

Yes, follow your passion especially if global health is something you really want to pursue in the future. Being open-minded and flexible is an important part of Global Health in Public Health. Interestingly enough, in February I met a man named John Robert Engole who was on the verge of death 10 years ago, having contracted HIV and suffering with a very low CD4 count. Nevertheless through global support of the PEPFAR inititiave that spread over the last decade, Engole became the first person in Uganda to benefit from antiretroviral drugs supplied by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This man is one small example of the huge impact PEPFAR has had on the health and hope of communities in Uganda, as well in the developing world. His journey reminds me the progress we’ve already seen in the expanding movement for health equity.