"I want to be a Doctor when I grow up"

Today at lunch we had a group reflection and discussion on the time we spent in the rural area north of Mumbai, the Thane district. We had a lovely representative from Impact India, Neelam, as our guide and leader throughout the day. She brought us to two different schools, a maternal and child health clinic, as well as the government sponsored community health clinic which is responsible for the primary care of over 50,000 individuals.

At the second school we visited one of the young girls, perhaps 9 or 10 years old, expressed her interest in becoming a Doctor. This, of course, thrilled us – seeing a young girl so full of ambition and aspiring to help others. Neelam had a different perspective; however, and upon leaving the girls’ ear shot quickly proclaimed that this sentiment was simply a pipe dream and was out of the realm of possibility.

This specific experience drove a lot of today’s conversation about the entire days’ experience and leads me on a thought path that branches at many different points. On one hand, how heartbreaking to think that this young girl has such a wonderful dream yet currently has very, very few if any resources to achieve it. On the other, perhaps it is almost a naïve bliss that she knows what she wants but perhaps her scope of understanding is narrow enough to spare her from extreme disappointment. Even yet another thought leads me to believe that it IS entirely possible for this astute young woman to pursue a career in medicine but perhaps not as a traditional American might view it. I would find it entirely possible for her to achieve some level of ayurvedic or tribal education and then be able to practice her medicinal trade throughout her village. Even though she wouldn’t be a Doctor in the sense of the word that we understand it, wouldn’t she still be providing the same type of support, care and service?

For every child we met on that day, there is a story. There is a story of who they are, where they came from, where they want to go and ultimately where they will end up. As budding social entrepreneurs and practitioners of both public and clinical health, it is our job to understand the present and future of our patients and community members, and also to truly understand their past. Without this knowledge, I feel that it may be impossible to impart information, treatment or any type of appropriate care.

Through the eyes of the one little girl, who so aspires to help people through medicine, it is possible to begin to see a global landscape that so greatly affects every part of each human on this planet. Understanding where we come from is the only way to truly understand where we can go.