El Centro: First Day

As I sat next to my supervisor, Dr. Cueto, in his office, I was able to look across the room into a crowded waiting area. I expected each visit to be brief and to the point: a quick how are you doing, let's take a look, here's what you need. This seemed to me to be the best way to manage such a large volume of patients. After all, it was already 4 PM (Dr. Cueto has a private dermatology practice during the day), and these patients ARE getting free health care. That's why I was taken aback when the first patient sat down and started talking, and talking, and talking some more. Now let me remind you that my Spanish is far from perfect and I couldn't understand everything that was being said. But I thought I heard her mention something about her grandchildren. Then she reached into her bag, pulled out a large photo of her grandaughter, and showed it to Dr. Cueto as he smiled proudly. She then reached into her bag again and pulled out a baby outfit with the Gimnasia logo (one of the two local Futbol teams in La Plata). This provoked a different response from Dr. Cueto because he is a die-hard fan of Estudiantes (the other, rival team from La Plata).

This was not an isolated incident. Dr. Cueto talks to each and every patient on a personal level. This particular woman had been coming in for HIV treatment for years, but he expresses the same amount of interest in patients he meets for the first time. I eventually came to the conclusion that providing this type of personal attention makes his job more manageable, not more difficult; even though we didn't leave the office until 9 PM.

Within the span of a few hours the following patients came into the clinic: a teenage girl who was sexually attacked and awaited an HIV test, a twenty-year-old man afraid to tell his family he has HIV, and a woman with AIDS who is homeless but does not want to stay at a group shelter. Clearly, the patients who come to this clinic have problems that go beyond health. Most have been living on the margins of society their entire lives, and HIV is just one more thing they have to worry about. By simply treating each "case" that comes in, without getting involved in the human element, it could be very easy to burn out. Treating illnesses all day does nothing to change the underlying imbalances in the world that create them. No matter how fast you dispense medicine, there will always be more people out there getting sick. One might feel like Sisyphus rolling his rock up the hill each day only to see if break apart into little pieces. But if you treat the person and try understand his or her individual struggles, the work you put in has more of a purpose. You will be able to take part in, and therefore appreciate, the life you help sustain. Of course this all comes at a price. Opening up yourself emotionally to patients that will likely pass away in a matter of years can be very difficult, and I understand why many avoid it.

This has been a lot to take in and has given me much to think about the past few days. There is no doubt that I will continue to learn a lot from all of the doctors at this clinic. I hope that I can prove my worth my starting a good project. I already have some ideas, but stay tuned till next time for more.

Living La Vida La Plata

A lot of people are asking me about my living situation because, after all, staying with a host family is a huge part of my cultural experience. I feel like I've lucked out. The house I'm staying in is very large, with a modern kitchen and an outdoor patio and grill for asados (typical Argentine barbecues.) Best of all, it is located in the center of town, meaning I can walk almost anywhere.

My host "Mom," Nuria, is only 28. She is single and technically lives alone, but that's never really the case. Her sister,Coral, lives down the street with her boyfriend Valentino, and they stop by all the time. I also have a roommate,Pablo, who is an exchange student from Spain, studying Law. Recently we had another addition to our house: a Beagle named Tonto (meaning silly). Here are some pictures of our happy family.

Nuria and Pablo showing me some moves on the dance floor.


Tonto being tonto.


Me with the honor of cutting the parillo.

La Plata: First Impressions

It's been a long time since I last posted, and a lot has happened since I arrived in La Plata two weeks ago. The first week was orientation. All of the new interns (there are five, including myself) stayed at a low-budget hotel and were shuttled around for different activities. We also had many things to discuss like safety, working with an NGO, living with a host family, cultural differences in Argentina, etc.

But despite the structure of orientation, I was able to see a lot of La Plata. It's a college town, much like Ann Arbor (where I spent 6 years of my life.) The city swells up with students in the Fall, bringing along with them a thriving local music scene, political activism, and intellectualism. I arrived at a great time: the beginning of Fall (remember the seasons are the reverse of the Northern Hemisphere) because the weather is perfect (about 70 F and sunny most days) and there are lots of things to do now that all the students have arrived.

While Buenos Aires is a very interesting and fun city, I am very glad to be living somewhere more tranquilo like La Plata. There are so many tourists in Buenos Aires, its hard to know what's the "real" Argentina and what's not. Here in La Plata, I will have a chance to see how Argentines really live. This is a picture of Argentines hanging out, something they love to do. Notice all the grafiti on buildings. I will post about this later.

Proceso de Aprendizaje

I arrived in Buenos Aires yesterday afternoon. The flight took off one hour into what turned out to be a monstrous snowstorm. But after a little de-icing, all system were go and I am now enjoying ninety degree weather.

I was able to practice my Spanish casually with the woman sitting next to me on my flight. Then I was forced to practice Spanish with my taxi driver at the airport. Generally, the people are very nice and patient with gringos like myself.

The purpose of this post is to explain some things I have already learned about the country in a very short amount of time.

1.) There are stray cats and dogs EVERYWHERE.



2.) There is a huge Israeli population in Buenos Aires. I went out to a concert with some people at my hostel and a band was playing Jewish music all night. It was pretty unexpected.



3.) Fake money is a real problem here. An American girl who went out with us apparently had a fake 100 peso note she thought she received from a bus driver. For this reason, people are very reluctant to take large bills, and when they do take them, they always check their authenticity. (A word of advice: do not do what she is doing, unless you want everyone to know you are a foreigner.)

Change of Plans

A lot has happened since my last post. The first and most important update is that my work site has changed. I will still be living in La Plata, Argentina. But instead of working with mental health issues in El Bohio, I will be working for the Centro de Referencia de VIH/SIDA. The health clinic’s mission is to provide treatment, offer emotional support, and advocate for people affected by HIV and AIDS. After conducting my final interview with the site team in Argentina, we all came to the conclusion that this new organization will be a better fit for my interests. I'm very excited. It forces me to change my approach, but that's to be expected given the uncertain dynamics of the developing world. I will post more about my work site and project possibilities in the next few weeks.

Also, after lots of planning and a fair amount of stress, I now have an exit strategy. I've finally made plans to leave the wonderful college town of Ann Arbor once and for all. I've notified HR, handed in my letter of resignation, and announced my last day of work to be Feb 26. The next day I will get a ride to the airport, bid farewell to my amazing girlfriend (so amazing that she is already making plans to visit me in Argentina), and fly to my mom's house in New Jersey. I have one day to make final preparations and then I'm off. I fly directly to Buenos Aires Sunday night, March 1, and arrive 11:30 AM March 2. I've arranged to take a language course for two weeks in Buenos Aires before my program orientation begins on March 14. During this time, I will stay at a hostel for a few nights and then move in with a temporary host family.

I'm also happy to report some good news on my graduate school applications. So far I've been accepted to Masters Programs in International Health at Johns Hopkins, Boston University, Tulane, and University of Pittsburgh Schools of Public Health. I will probably wait until April to make a decision, but the fact that I'll be going somewhere gives me motivation to get the most out of this coming internship.

Fundraising

This is where I ask friends and family who are following this blog to consider making a donation that will help cover the cost of my internship. I want to begin by explaining why I have to pay in the first place.

The Foundation for Sustainable Development (FSD): Fee for Service Model
FSD's method for supporting sustainable development is to partner with small community-based organizations (CBO's) that predominately do not receive funding from major sources (CARE, USAID, etc.). These CBO's do great work, but work so deeply in the trenches that they do not have outreach and fundraising branches. FSD supports these organizations directly by sending interns (like me) who donate their passion, time, and expertise. Instead of reducing participant fees, FSD allocates 100 percent of these funds to support projects designed collaboratively by participants and their host organizations.

How to Donate
1.) You may donate to my project via Paypal. Simply click the "Donate Now" button on this blog and follow the steps.
2.) You may donate to my project via a check. Please make the check out to "FSD" and put my name (Michael Best) and my project site (El Bohio) somewhere on the check. Please mail the check to my address so that I can send all them all at once. My address is:
Michael Best
1014 Vaughn Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48104

Cost of Program
Total Cost of 16-Week Program: $5,175

This covers transportation to and from the airport, 3 meals a day, lodging, "access to weekly laundry service," trainings, emergency health insurance, ongoing support from the FSD field office, and a mid-term retreat.

Airfare: $500-$1000
Estimated Additional Daily Living Expenses: $ 1,000 to 2,000

I hope to raise enough money to pay for the full cost of the program. I plan on purchasing a flight with my own savings.

More Information: here is the fundraising letter I am sending to friends and family.
Fundraising Letter

El Bohio Internship - The Basics

Hey everyone! Thanks for checking out my blog. As some of you already know, I am busily preparing for a four-month long volunteer internship in La Plata, Argentina, beginning March 14. I'd like to take this opportunity to answer some basic FAQ's.

What will you do while you're there?
I have been placed with a non-profit organization called El Bohio. El Bohio is a therapeutic center that promotes physical and mental rehabilitation for drug addicts, alcoholics, and other socially marginalized individuals in need of support. During my time in the country, I will be collaborating with medical professionals to provide education, group therapy, and workshops to assist individuals with their transition to independent living. I will also be using my second language, Spanish, to communicate with others. For more detailed information, here's my offer letter: El Bohio

Where will you be living?
I will be placed with a host family that is required to provide a private room, three meals a day, purified water, and weekly washing of clothes.

Why are you doing this?
I love global health. I recently finished applying to eight different Masters programs in Global Health and Epidemiology. While I wait to hear back from schools, I decided I would use the time I have now to get practical global health experience. I chose an internship in Argentina for two major reasons: 1. It's an opportunity to become fluent in Spanish, a language I studied for four semesters in college but have not mastered. 2. Argentina, due largely to it's tumultuous economic and political history, has witnessed a spike in emotional disorders and substance-abuse problems in recent years. I believe mental disease is an overlooked aspect of global public health and I feel compelled to do something about it.