Patient Interviews, Epidemiology, and Public Health in the Real World

This afternoon, the interns stepped deeper into the clinical side of healthcare by learning how to conduct a patient interview and navigate a patient’s history. Dr. Aisha led them through an engaging lecture on building rapport, asking the right questions, and making patients feel heard and supported. A couple of brave volunteers even hopped on stage to put their new skills to the test in front of their peers - and they did an amazing job!

After that, the interns met Rory Wilson, a postgraduate fellow who worked on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic as part of the NHS. Rory gave them a crash course in Epidemiology 101, opening their eyes to the study of disease patterns and how this field shapes public health decisions. Many of the interns shared that they hadn’t really considered epidemiology before, but left the session feeling newly excited about its possibilities.

To close out the day, Sarah Little, who works in Global Development, spoke about Public Health in the Real World. She explored how we examine communities and truly listen to people’s realities in order to make informed, impactful decisions. Sarah led the interns through an example focus group, challenging them to think critically about who might be hiding information and why. The discussion that followed sparked a lot of thoughtful conversation about trust, corruption, and how even small acts of dishonesty can ripple out to harm community health.