by Caitlin Wort

​One article from this week’s media that struck me with its facts came from Dr. Flavia Bustreo and is called, “Ten Top Health Issues for Women’s Health Globally”. The main point of this reading is to inform people around the world what health issues women struggle with the most around the world. One thing that struck me the most was the fact that the reading mentioned that there are 222 million women around the world who aren’t getting the access they need to contraception. This article has meaning to my life because I have had access to contraception since I was 16 years old, just to help control my acne, I cannot imagine that there are 222 million young girls struggling with sexual and reproductive health and even hormonal acne, that cannot get the help they need because they don’t have access to contraception services near where they live.
The second reading that I am going to be writing about is called “What are the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals?” The main points of this reading include the development of sustainable development goals or SDGs, to help make the world a better place. Something that struck me was the fact that there are little things we can all do on a daily basis to help support these SDGs and make them more possible. This reading relates to global events around the world because there are currently places around the world that are struggling with climate change and are being affected by massive wildfires; there are also many places around the world that do not have access to clean water and sanitation and would benefit greatly from both of those things.

The two readings that are mentioned above, support each other because, the first reading talks about health issues for women around the world and the second reading that I am writing about talks about Sustainable Development Goals to help end poverty, protect the planet and make sure that all citizens have peace and prosperity. Other readings from this week’s module connect to the readings mentioned above because they are speaking about basic human rights and explaining what human rights means to citizens of different countries who may not know. In reading 1.2, there was a quote mentioned that was said at the 1993 UN Conference on Human Rights in Vienna, “Women’s rights are human rights” and I strongly believe this because women around the world do not have access to basic medications or sanitation products that they need on a daily basis.
 
 
1.2 Why Use a Human Rights Lens to Study Women's Global Health Issues? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/1369235/pages/1-dot-2-why-use-a-human-rights-lens-to-study-womens-global-health-issues?module_item_id=10085461
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Bustreo, F. (2016, January 4). Ten top issues for women's health. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/life-course/news/commentaries/2015-intl-womens-day/en/
The Lazy Person's Guide to Saving the World - United Nations Sustainable Development. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/takeaction/
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Respond to one of the video stories you watched about birth in America. Describe 3 factors that influence maternal mortality in America among women of color. Did you realize the U.S. had such a horrible maternal rate for a developing country? What are 2 things that could be done by our healthcare system to better support expectant mothers?  Be sure to credit your sources. 
        I watched the story in Louisiana, from Birth in America. This clip captured the true effects of being pregnant as a minority in Louisiana.  I already knew the struggles African American women go through in order to receive the same health opportunities as those who identify as white. Factors that influence maternal mortality in America among women of color are poverty, lack of trust with doctors and patients, and lack of knowledge. Poverty is the main issue which impacts maternal mortality. Women who don’t have money tend to live in low- income neighborhoods, these neighborhoods could be 30 minutes to 1 hour away; most of these women don’t have access to a car and are commuting by a bus. Which is time consuming.  These women also don’t have access to prenatal care to help keep their babies healthy and have a smooth pregnancy and birth.  Second is lack of care between doctor and patients, this is the most important out of all of the factors. If these women do not have a good relationship with their provider, they are less likely to go and keep up with their appointments.  Lastly, lack of knowledge. Some of these women don’t know that the world is against them when it comes to their maternal mortality. Under the clip, there talks about a woman who didn’t know that the stats were against women of color.  How many women die each year and that there is nothing being done. This knowledge can be used to protect these women and help save their lives.  
Two things that could be done by our healthcare system to better support expectant mothers are providing midwives/doulas and spending money to help improve the care of women who have 1-12 months old babies. The clip,Midwives, doulas could benefit births --but not all women have access; the women talk about how there isn’t a lot of care for native and African American women. So, they had created a center which helped women have a powerful and controlled birth at their own pace.  A clip from a web show “Healthcare Triage,” talks about how care before giving birth isn’t helping the rates of maternal mortality go down but “spending a significant amount of money on poor women to improve the health of their 1 month- to- 1 year old might not save lives; but might be cost-effective, too” (healthcare Triage, 2016). I'm surprised that not helping women pre- pregnancy isn’t the way to go; it's something I thought that would help these women in the future.
Spotlight a local or global non-profit or activist group that is working to improve maternal health in the U.S. (EXCLUDING; Planned Parenthood and Groundswell). What is the name of the organization, its mission, and its services that it provides? 
     I choose Natural Organization for Women, as my local or global non-profit or activist group that is working to improve maternal health in the U.S. Their mission statement that they are “dedicated to its multi-issue and multi-strategy approach to women’s rights and is the largest organization of feminist grassroots activists in the United States. Since our founding in 1966, NOW’s purpose is to take action through intersectional grassroots activism to promote feminist ideals, lead societal change, eliminate discrimination, and achieve and protect the equal rights of all women and girls in all aspects of social, political, and economic life” (NOW, 2020). The NOW provides a various activity such as reproductive Rights and Justices, Ending violence against women, economic justices, LGBTQ rights, racial justices and constitutional equality Amendment. With Reproductive Rights and Justices this program strives to bring education for all, so that women can improve their health and maintain their health for themselves and their families.  These are a few of the activates that you or anyone can get involved with to bring awareness to these various issues. 

- Gellila Solomon
RESOURCES:
                  Healthcare Triage. (206, Aug 22). Infant Mortality in the United States is Surprisingly High [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ToJbhLEbdM&feature=emb_logo
 
          Howard, J. (2017, November 15). Retrieved February 17, 2020, from https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/15/health/black-women-maternal-mortality/index.html
 
  Howard, J. (2019, November 16). Retrieved February 17, 2020, from https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/16/health/midwives-doulas-every-mother-counts-wellness/index.html
 
             National Organization for Women. (2020). Retrieved February 16, 2020, from https://now.org/​
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"By: Jordan Tomas
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​Sometimes, we have one of those moments that shifts our lives into an unexpected direction and takes us down a path we never expected. This is something that Shannon Watts experienced in 2012. Once living an "ordinary life" as a stay-at-home mom, her life suddenly changed when she learned of the news of the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT that killed 26 people, mostly children. Shannon expressed increased concern as she reflected upon not just the Sandy Hook shooting, but previous mass shootings from recent years, especially as a mother of five children.

With heavy emotions, she decided that enough was enough and decided take action, starting with creating a simple Facebook group for other moms to have an online conversation with. This group page was called, “One Million Moms for Gun Control.” What she did not expect was that this action took her on  a journey, with a new set of challenges.  She would go on to become the founder of “MOMS Demand Action for Gun Sense in America,” a grassroots movement and platform for mothers, fathers, students, survivors, and families working together to fight for public safety measures to protect people from gun violence. This book is her story and her ambitious endeavor to fight for public safety against gun violence and the many lessons she learned along the way.

Watts’ resolve in establishing and (later) maintaining a novel grassroots movement reflects upon our own tenacity as human beings and what we could achieve individually and as a community, whether it be being a nurse, a doctor, a lawyer, a professional athlete, etc. Watts recounts various events that allowed her to be a driving force for change in a daunting and cutthroat political environment. As In these particular moments, she demonstrated the importance of having a mother in the family/organization and the unique power of women can provide in their respective communities and in society as a whole, both figuratively and literally. A mother’s will power and ability to multi-task are, at times, underappreciated and this book is an emphatic reminder of the uniqueness of their role in society.

Fight Like a Mother is an inspirational story of courage, determination, perseverance, patience, and using your voice to advocate for something more than yourself. The book provides a realistic, but optimistic perspective on how people can take action to advocate for policies to protect and save lives. Readers will be moved by Watts’ story and her ability to transform members of her movement to becoming leaders themselves in the movement to reduce gun violence in their own respective communities. Readers will find that they, themselves, can discover a greater purpose in their own lives. In Watts’ eyes, anyone and everyone (especially women) can take that leap of faith in anything that they are passionate (or emotional) about. In the words of Watts herself,

Whatever emotion is pulling at your heartstrings, go with it. Those intense feelings aren’t meant to torture you, or to make you feel disempowered, but exactly the opposite. Any heartache you may be feeling about where the world is headed means one thing: it’s time to go from outraged to engaged (p. 18-19).

To say that I recommend Fight Like a Mother as a great read sells the book short. Fight Like a Mother shines as a story of hope and empowerment. This book can be considered one of the best uplifting books for modern society. From a nursing and public health perspective, health care workers can gain from reading this book and strive to become better advocates and leaders in their institutions and communities, themselves, especially in terms of improving health care policies, not just gun policy and reform.

Conflict of Interest
There is no conflict of interest to note for this review.
 
Reference
Watts, S. (2019). Fight Like A Mother. HarperOne.

  I met Daniel, who later is named Jessica, at my work. After multiple occurrences and some break downs we later became friends and she’s allowed me to describe our relationship and hers with healthcare for this assignment. I work as a service ambassador at a medical center. Essentially my job is to either check people in at the desk or kiosk and manage the floor of the waiting area. I’ve also worked the desk down at urgent care where we’ve shared some moments as well. I first met Jessica before she transitioned and was named Daniel. She was coming into her appointment with her provider to discuss the transitioning process. She was shy, scared, and alone. This was her first in-person visit with the provider and she didn’t know how trustworthy they were. She came alone because she wasn’t ready to discuss this change in her life with her parents just yet. Luckily, she found a primary care provider that she could trust and a friend in myself to help with her healthcare profile. But it wasn’t smooth roads throughout the whole transition process.
    There were times when she would come into family practice with questions on medication or urgent care and her primary care provider that she trusted was either not available or wasn’t in that day. She wasn’t able to be her true self and often held back the more personal details which could have been crucial to her care. Although providers were usually nice and welcoming, she just wasn’t comfortable enough to show who she really way. Even checking in at the desk she felt judged when her preferred name or gender was not acknowledged or expressed in conversation. Phone calls with her insurances were the worst, I was there ready with tissues for tears because of how stressed she got. Some things weren’t covered, they wouldn’t talk to my company about the legal name or sex changes, and essentially having things lead back to her parents before she was ready was a big problem. One big issue we had together was getting a certain medication refill. There was loss communication with the provider and the outside pharmacy about a self-injected medication that couldn’t be solved in a timely manner with the doctor of the day because of what was discussed one-on-one with Jessica and her provider. On our worst days she would leave without care because all the stress was too much to handle, and as a friend and employer I felt like I failed my job in both positions.
   When discussing sexual identity and how it affects their overall healthcare, Jessica really brought some realization to my eyes. She said she knows that providers are not supposed to reject patients due to their religion, lifestyle, choices, etc. but she always felt like she was being judged. It could be the smallest movement, tone, or look and she’ll start to get anxiety. She feels as if people are there to help her yet they’re holding back somehow. She still hasn’t defined it as reality or just her mind overthinking but feeling that way when seeking help is wrong and sad. No one should feel that way when being brave and reaching out. Just because people have different life decisions than you don’t mean they’re to be treated differently. We’re all humans. We’re all trying to live our happiest and most comfortable lives. 
-Darlina  

Beauty is such a malleable definition for me, the way I viewed beauty today is very different from the way I viewed beauty 5 months and 5 years ago, and I am sure that 5 months or 5 years from now, my view today will be outdated for my future self.
Growing up as a first generation American in a home and environment with Cambodian refugees, my cultural upbringing swung towards traditional Cambodian views and beliefs. In Cambodia, the media only focused on white (light-skinned), thin women with thick, long and jet black hair. These women were the face plastered in the movies, music videos and billboards all around the country, a country working its way to recover from the very recent genocide. As someone who lived in the United States growing up, what I saw in the media here in the US and in Cambodia, these unrealistic standards of beauty strayed far off what I was seeing when I looked at myself in the mirror. As someone who did NOT look anything like what was seen in the media, the way other people viewed me really influenced the way I felt about my own body and appearance for a long time. Being no more than 10 years old and having aunties and uncles during family gatherings to tell me to stay out of the sun, eat less and play more really affected my self esteem and how I viewed myself for a very long time. Like Delali Bright’s Cultural Clashes in Defining Beauty Ted Talk, I was put on strict diets and was giving strict schedules on when to eat, how much to eat in order to maintain/work on the way I was rapidly gaining weight as a kid. When Bright said “I realized I let other people's opinions determined my joys and sorrows based on what the two cultures defined as beauty” I could really relate to her, this is how I felt at the age of about 13, when I realized that although I did not fit the narrative of the girls and women that I see in the media in the United States and Cambodia, I was my own type of beautiful. I am still finding it hard to completely love and accept myself for who I am, and I do think that it will take me awhile to do so, but I am so glad that I am working in the direction of acceptance and self love. There is no one standard of beauty, beauty is everywhere. 

By: Aliyah 

References: 
Bright, D. (n.d.). Retrieved February 3, 2020, from https://www.ted.com/talks/delali_bright_cultural_clashes_in_defining_beauty?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare

West , L. (2016). Are you there, Margaret, It's Me a Person Who is Not a Complete Freak. In Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman.

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Growing up, the beauty “ideals” in my community were girls who were skinny, had clear skin or light skin tone. Girls who are of a darker skin toned and chubby were always considered ugly. I got to see this ideal further when I went to Vietnam in 2018. When I was there, my aunts would tell me that they would be happy to take me to put “powder” to make my skin “whiter” because it will make me prettier. They would also comment about my weight because I didn’t look like the girls there. They would say this to me a couple times making me feel self conscious about myself because skin color or weight shouldn’t determine how beautiful someone is.

Although I was born in the U.S, I grew up hearing about beauty standards of Southeast Asia. In Western culture, it is a common belief that “thinness is beauty” (Mills, Shannon, Hogue, 2017, p 146). Western culture depicts what the “perfect” body weight and shape on a women should like in the media. Women believe in these messages impacting what they think about themselves causing them to put themselves down. In Asia, dark skin is associated with working in the fields or poverty while pale skin is associated with living a life in doors away from the sun (Salvá, 2019). People with dark skin are viewed as ugly and are often made fun of. Like Western ideals of body image, in Asia, “the preference for white skin is reinforced via the media” and can be seen as skin whitening creams are available in pharmacies (Salvá, 2019).

The beauty standards for men and women are different. It's as if men can get away with more things such as appearance and personal hygiene whereas women are nitpicked for ever little thing. Women are often judged for their looks, weight, style, and many other factors. It seems that no matter what women do, they aren't good enough. Beauty standards are detrimental to mental health as it can cause people to develop eating disorders, anxiety, or depression as a result to be accepted. Lack of representation in social media of all beauty and body types influences how people see themselves. There needs to be more representation in the media of women of different body types to show girls and women around the world that there is not just one image of what a woman should look like. More representation can help women feel empowered and believe that they are perfect the way they are. ​
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​By: Selena  
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References:
Mills, J., Shannon, A., Hogue, J. (2017). Beauty, Body Image, and the Media. Perception of Beauty. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.68944

Salvá, A. (2019, December 2). Where Does the Asian Obsession With White Skin Come From? Retrieved from https://thediplomat.com/2019/12/where-does-the-asian-obsession-with-white-skin-come-from/

My views of gender have evolved more than what I understood. I grew up in a rural desert town and in a traditional home. My dad went to work, my mom stayed home with my brothers and I until we were old enough to go to school, then she would work the typical receptionist or office assistant jobs. She married my dad at 19, did not go to college, and began having kids at a young age. She was responsible for maintaining our house while my dad was working all day, making dinners, laundry, grocery shopping, taking my brothers and I to appointments, all of it. My mom was a walking daily schedule packed full of tasks. I grew up watching my dad come home from work and not lift a finger to help my mom. He wouldn’t even put his dishes in the dishwasher-he would leave his dishes by the sink for her to put away. This is what I grew up with as my norm, what I understood a wife and mother’s role was while the husband was working. There was not an ounce of an equal partnership in my parent’s relationship. My mom also didn’t have the same power my dad had-financial power. She was dependent on him financially and he knew that. 
My views on gender didn’t change until two things happened. First, I moved away from my hometown and started going to college at UWB. Taking classes here has opened my eyes and mind so much to how the world operates in different locations and the factors behind it. Last year I took a Human Rights and Resistance class which covered the countries in South Asia. That was my first really impactful come-to with gender inequality and how gender inequality has so many negative effects not just on women, but on society as a whole. The second thing that happened was my mom divorced my dad, and she has worked incredibly hard to create a successful career for herself. After not going to college, my mom was given a chance to learn how hospital technology systems work, and was given an opportunity to learn how to teach hospitals these new programs, write teaching materials, and help build the system through software coding. 
(The photo I'm including is of my mom and I seeing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago, where she was working on a project at a medical facility!) 

#HereForYou campaign started off on a well known social media platform, Instagram. The CEO and co-founder, Kevin Systrom, noticed that people come together and highlight the important of talking about mental health and encourage others into seeking treatment and support. This allows  people on Instagram to be able to find the confidence in sharing their stories and journey with their mental health and allow others to connect with them and find support. In the blog post by Kevin, he said he was “committed to fostering a safer, kinder community and highlighting these inspiring voices”.

Instagram found three influencers that has already created these communities on IG and has given much-needed support and information to others already and created a 1 minute video highlighting the importance of talking about mental health. This video was shown and shared worldwide, helping to raise awareness about mental health and the importance of finding support.

That following September, IG launched a new feature that will allow people to be able to connect to mental health resources near them. “If you see a post on Instagram from someone who may be in need of mental health support, you can report it anonymously. The next time that person logs into the app, we will connect them to organizations in their country that offer help. We have teams working 24 hours a day, seven days a week to review these reports. We also display these resources when someone visits a hashtag page for a sensitive topic”. Aside from this, they are also working beyond and trying to allow access to other organizations like the Crisis Text Line and National Eating Disorder Association and Samaritans.

The TedTalk with Vickram Patel about “Mental Health for All by Involving All”, I thought was interesting because it talks about how not only in wealthy nations, only half of patients who are affected by mental illness receive the appropriate care, but in developing countries, close to 90 percent are untreated since psychiatrists are in such short supply. He mentions in his video that “mental illnesses are amongst the leading causes of disability around the world. Depression, for example, is the third-leading cause of disability, alongside conditions such as diarrhea and pneumonia in children”. (1:48)  When thinking about mental illness, I never think to far ahead of how many people it actual affects as well as who and how common it is amount our population. Hearing that example has brought my attention that mental health plays a bigger factor in our lives than people think it does, and that we should start advocating and educating more of our healthcare systems to be able to handle and execute treatment to the best of the physicians ability for the patient. Another thing that stood out to me was when he said “when you are short of specialized healthcare professionals, use whoever is available in the community, train them to provide a range of healthcare interventions…” (6:47) I like this idea, because not only is it going to provide the community more resources, it’s cost efficient and allows those who are in the community to be able to provide for their community, whereas an outsider coming in and potentially leaving. ​

Malinda  

By: Will  
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Culture plays a significant role when it comes to an individual’s influences and beliefs, as well as identifying your values and upbringing. Being immersed in another culture may conflict with an individual’s beliefs which can create tension. An example of a clash of cultures is demonstrated with how Western culture versus Native American culture both deal with overall health. Western culture is highly relied on technology to create more science based treatments. On the other hand, Native American culture is highly dependent on natural remedies as well having spiritual energies along side with strong community engagement. Additionally, the history behind Western and Native Americans has developed historical trauma which can create hesitancy when merging both parties.

From the film, Culture Matters: Indigenous Perspectives on Behavioral Health, the documentary highlighted the importance of integrating Native American, Alaska Native and Pacific Islander culture in behavioral health care programs. A characteristic that was lacking in Western practices when providing assistance to these indigenous populations was cultural incompetency. “Understanding the unique life experiences of those you serve and the transformative power in healing that can come from reconnecting with one’s culture was a fundamental principle” (8:02-8:13). Native American and Pacific Islander cultures have been very community based and tight-knit. Passing down traditions and practices to multiple generations, the indigenous groups value preserving their culture. “It’s important to understand that services for indigenous communities are often part of a broader nation-building context. That is, services are not merely services, they’re part of what’s needed to build strong nations and futures for indigenous and Native people'' (14:40-14:57). Overall, health care providers and programs should be more aware about cultural differences in the communities they serve. “... the most effective way to work with American Indian people, generally speaking, is when we’re utilizing traditional philosophies in our own language and our own perspectives with the best of what modern medicine has to offer” (23:22-23:34). Finding a balance between modern medicine and respecting traditional cultural practices is what we should strive for.

This week’s TED talk Mental Health for All by Involving All with Vikram Patel, piqued my interest regarding affordable mental health assets. “Mental illnesses are amongst the leading causes of disabilities around the world. Depression, for example, is the third leading cause of disability …” (1:57-2:06). With mental illness having one of the largest disability rates worldwide, Patel addresses the scarce shortage of mental health professionals, especially in developing countries. He then introduces the idea of task shifting as a means of assistance. Task shifting is when ordinary people are trained to provide care in a range of health care interventions when their community is short staffed with specialized health care professionals. Patel created an acronym that highlighted the key lessons for effective task shifting: SUNDAR, meaning ‘attractive’ in Hindi. Simplify the message, UNpack the treatment, Deliver it to where people are, Affordable and available human resources and Reallocation of specialists to train and supervise. This idea caught my attention because not only is task shifting more accessible and affordable but also fundamentally empowering, giving people the opportunity to care about the health for others in their community.

The WHO’s infographic on Global Mental Health ties in cohesively with Patel’s TED talk. The infographic showcases the shortage of mental health care providers and lack of services provided worldwide. The human resources statistics stood out to me regarding that “Only 1% of the global health workforce works in mental health” and “45% of the world’s population live in a country with less than one psychiatrist for 100,000 people” (WHO, 2015). More specifically, the U.S. has 4.3 nurses and 10.5 psychiatrists working in a mental health sector in comparison to Canada which has 68.7 nurses and 14.7 psychiatrists (WHO, 2016). This contrasting difference between Canada and the U.S. shows that even in developed countries, there is a lack of attention based around mental health care providers and assets.

Sources:
Wide Angle Studios, (August 11, 2011). Culture Matters: Indigenous Perspectives on Behavioral Health [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=16&v=yfdCaFEls_c&feature=emb_logo.
TED, (September 11, 2012). Mental Health for All by Involving All | Vikram Patel | TED Talks [Video File] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzm4gpAKrBk.
WHO, (2015). Global Mental Health [Infographic]. 
WHO, (2016). Psychiatrists and nurses working in mental health sector (per 100 000 population), 2014-2016. Retrieved from http://gamapserver.who.int/gho/interactive_charts/mental_health/psychiatrists_nurses/atlas.html.