Community Interviews, and The Value of a Used Honda: Chad

Today was my first day at the Summer Institute. It began early and went late. I learned things I had never known, let alone even thought about. We began the morning with a lecture on the urban design of Tulsa. This lecture brought up several interesting points including the transportation issues facing the underserved communities, such as North Tulsa. Before today, my main thought of automobiles was that I wish I had a better car than a used Honda. However, after today, I began to think of what my life would be like, if I did not have my used Honda. I became grateful very quickly. I would have to take public transportation everywhere I wanted to go such as for a doctor visit, to Walmart, to the dry cleaners, and to work every day. This could complicate my life very easily.
After the morning lectures we went out into the community to interview different community agencies and how they impact/or are impacted by Tulsa. The experience that stood out to me the most was at the Community Service Center. We spoke with the person in charge of Hispanic affairs. She told us of the many struggles facing the Hispanic community in Tulsa. One thing that really stood out to me was that an issue of trust emerged as a determining factor as a roadblock to overall medical treatment. There is a cultural awareness that needs to be learned by more physicians. In the Hispanic community, it is the eldest female in the household that is looked up to for medical advice by the entire family, quite frequently, more so than even physicians. That is why it is important that, as a future physician, I learn to treat the whole family and not just the patient. Because if the grandmother disagrees with the treatment, the patient is not likely to comply.
The second half of my day consisted of a discussion with other group members who had different community experiences. It was informative to hear about their encounters in the community and how it was similar to mine. We tried to find a common theme amongst the different organizations and we found that every organization is motivated to make an improvement. A major issue we found, though, was that there needs to be better coordination and communication amongst these organizations. After the day was over, we came back to our dorm rooms and discussed health care topics even more. It was a good way to bounce ideas off of each other in a very causal way. I had an outstanding experience today and can not wait until tomorrow!
Chad Knight