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Christina's Graduation with Leadership Distinction in Research e-portfolio
The Importance of Multidisciplinary Thought in a Globalized World
Capstone
Capstone
Where I began my studies at the University of South Carolina
The warm September sun beat down on my neck as I hurried towards the iconic Capstone building holding back a pool of eruptive tears. I raced to reach the safety of the plush white duvet in my cinder block dorm. Shivers trickled down my spine as irregular sharp breaths escaped my mouth in an augmentative fashion. Deceased. No longer alive. Gone, forever. The dams cracked and hysteria burst from my quivering lips as tears cascaded down my cheeks. I did not make it home. He would never make it home. The day my friend took his own life, only a few weeks into our first year of college, was the day I decided something had to be done about the state of mental health prevention, stigma, and care in the United States and globally. Although I was no expert, I had to do something to change the systems that were failing us in the worst ways. To do so, I would need more than just myself, I needed whole systems to change. However, I quickly realized that to devise effective solutions to the suicide and mental health epidemics I would need to combine my interests across disciplines and extend my inquiry outside of the classroom to the realm of research and community engagement in public health, neuroscience, and medicine. In the modern globalized world, one must think in a multidisciplinary manner when trying to solve problems (research-related or beyond).
After that hot September day, I wasted no time in starting my pursuit to become more knowledgeable about mental health and wellness through engaging in multidisciplinary thought with an open mind and thirst for knowledge. During my first semester of college, in ENGL 102: Rhetoric and Composition, I wrote an argumentative essay (WTC - Artifact 1) on the importance of the Bio-Psycho-Social-Spiritual approach to mental health promotion on college campuses (Amen, 2015). During this same semester, I applied for and received a Magellan Apprentice grant to perform quantitative research on mental health diagnoses in the Latino population. I threw myself into this research with minimal knowledge of epidemiology or research methods, just the desire to contribute where I noticed a gap in knowledge (a key to any good research). As I progressed through my public health curriculum, I learned many skills and concepts that helped me further develop my research. I presented a Discover USC Poster in my third year that provided key information from my research and addressed the trends of mental health diagnoses in the Latino Population in South Carolina (BTC – Artifact 1). Sharing my work with others added dimension to my learning as I believe “to teach is to learn twice.”
Mental health/wellness is an area of medicine and culture that continues to evolve as globalization sweeps the world. Throughout my coursework, I have realized that mental wellness and its connection to our environment, genetics, and behavior are as complex and diverse as the trillions of synaptic connections in our brain. Serving as a Resident Mentor in a residential community of 650 peers, I incorporated knowledge gained through research and classes to promote mental wellness. While starting my Resident Mentor position, I was enrolled in PSYC 455: Introduction to Neuroscience and PUBH: 102: Introduction to Public Health. I also continued my research on mental health in the Latino population. Through these various roles, the complexity and interconnectedness of all things began to present itself and I realized just how important various perspectives were on producing meaningful research. As I learned about the neurobiology of the brain in PSYC 455: Introduction to Neuroscience and how the Socio-Ecological Model influences health in PUBH: 102: Introduction to Public Health (McLeroy, Bibeau, Steckler, & Glanz, 1988), I realized that public health and neuroscience pertain to everything. In each course, my previous research on the magnitude of mental health’s impact on society was reinforced by our discussion of suicide statistics. Additionally, we discussed the opioid crisis in PUBH 102: Introduction to Public Health while learning how opioids affect the brain in PSYC 455: Introduction to Neuroscience. This was yet another way neuroscience and public health were intricately intertwined and exemplified how mental health is impacted by several levels of the Socio-Ecological Model.
Socio-Ecological Model
What emerged from this interconnected class content was a question. I wondered how often different disciplines were solving the same problem without combining knowledge. Would combing knowledge not produce the best solution? I argued for a holistic approach to mental health in my ENGL 102: Rhetoric and Composition paper (WTC – Artifact 1) and this trend seemed to naturally present itself once again. As I tended to suicidal ideation and other mental health concerns of my residents, I realized that each level of the Socio-Ecological Model (or Ecological Approach) impacted my residents’ mental health through the various levels: individual differences, interpersonal relationships, organizational opportunities, community connectedness and even public policy (McLeroy et al., 1988). I saw individual differences with how different students from similar backgrounds had vastly different reactions to the transition to college. I saw how policy affected students as healthy food options were hard to come by and putting additional stress on students and contributing to unhealthy behaviors. In my nutrition assessment completed for EXSC 191: Physical Activity and Health (WTC - Artifact 2) during my first semester as a Resident Mentor, I realized just how difficult it was for me to eat a perfectly balanced diet and the implications this had on my health. I wondered how this impacted my own physical and mental health and took action to fill the gaps. This made me wonder about my residents’ diets as well, and how a system could be so broken, that eighteen-year old’s in America did not know how to provide the proper nutrition for their body which fueled their minds.
WTC - Artifact 2
I have continued to find the connections between classes, my research, and outside activities since that first semester when the loss of a close friend to suicide ignited my desire to learn more about mental health. This event led me to my first funded research project and has influenced me up to my final semester in which I took a yoga class for credit, a prevention measure I discussed in my (WTC - Artifact 1). I have championed my residents’ mental health through the promotion of healthy lifestyle behaviors and developed a passion for the intersection of public health and neuroscience; clinical medicine and public health; yoga and mental health. With many of these interests combined, I applied for the Truman Scholarship with hopes of obtaining a competitive national fellowship to continue learning and researching through a Master’s in Public Health. As seen in the Truman application below, through this process I found that George Washington University emphasized the public policy piece of the Socio-Ecological Model in their medical school curriculum (BTC – Artifact 2). This further emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary education and problem-solving. We do not live in Petri dishes with a controlled environment; thus, it is important to analyze things holistically and through various lenses.
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I will take with me the importance of combining my passions across fields of study as I continue with pursuits to make a positive difference in today’s evolving world. I will continue to learn and strive towards progress by considering holistic solutions and keeping an open mind to new interventions and research. In the past four years of learning within and beyond the classroom, research has allowed me to connect things across my public health and neuroscience disciplines. This will continue to be important if I hope to increase the body of research to advance the prevention and treatment of mental disorders to, one day, reduce morbidity and mortality.
WTC - Artifact 1
BTC- Artifact 1
WTC - Artifact 2
BTC - Artifact 2
References
Amen, D. G. (2015). Change Your Brain, Change your Life. Rev. ed., Harmony Books.
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McLeroy, K. R., Bibeau, D., Steckler, A., & Glanz, K. (1988). The social ecology of health promotion interventions. Health Education Quarterly, 15(4), 351-377. Retrieved from http://tamhsc.academia.edu/KennethMcLeroy/Papers/81901/An_Ecological_Perspective_on_Health_Promotion_Programs.