Opening the Door to Global Health Talent
By Jonny Dorsey and Barbara Bush
Young people do amazing work toward building a world where everyone can access health care and live a full life. Yet all too frequently, they must claw their way into opportunities within the global health community.
Consequently, many young people who have a desire to serve turn to other careers. If we want to win the battle against today’s enormous health challenges, we must build a robust pipeline of talent for global health, and harness the wave of energy, enthusiasm and skill of the millennial generation.
Global Health Corps is a testament to the power of young people in action. Since its founding in 2009, Global Health Corps has placed 58 fellows from 10 countries in health nonprofits around the world to fill critical needs – welcoming them into a growing community of public servants while providing a stepping-stone into a career in public health. Importantly, fellows are placed in team of two: one American, and one peer from the African host country. A strong leadership pipeline must include young people from emerging and developing countries as well as their wealthier-nation peers to create meaningful change and build leadership around the world.
For example, at Partners In Health (PIH) in Rwanda, two Global Health Corps fellows – a Rwandan and an American – managed a $1.4 million procurement of medical equipment and supplies for the Burera Hospital in northern Rwanda. But they weren’t the only fellows who worked on this project; two other fellows worked as architects of the hospital. Another fellow created the operating plan for the hospital, which serves a community of 400,000 poor Rwandans. Other fellows helped plan the integration with the Rwandan government.
Following their fellowships, one individual now works as PIH’s Africa procurement and logistics coordinator, while another oversees the construction and rehabilitation of health centers across the entire country in his new position within the Rwandan Ministry of Health.
Unfortunately, most of the young talent that seeks to work in this space is turned away. In fact, one of the fellows who worked on the Burera Hospital had difficulties getting a foot into the global health community, despite performing well in school, starting a FACE AIDS Chapter, and providing hospice care in his home community. When he applied for Global Health Corps, he was bartending in Washington, D.C. to make a living. During his fellowship, he was so effective that he was hired and promoted by his placement organization – yet our sector almost missed out on his commitment, and his talent.
Huge numbers of millennials want to serve in global health, and this desire is only growing. This year Global Health Corps received more than 2,000 applications for 70 positions. Many organizations, including two we work with closely, FACE AIDS and GlobeMed, are further strengthening this pool of equity-focused student-leaders through engagement on high school and college campuses.
The private sector has focused significant resources on building talent pipelines of young people. Entire programs at business schools and large corporations focus on recruiting, training and retaining talent. While the social sector cannot always use the same strategies as multinational companies, it can still invest in emerging leaders, and in exchange, reap great results. No organization proves this as clearly as Teach for America.
Teach for America recruits more than 4,000 young teachers from the top colleges in America every year – many of whom emerge two years later not only with a dedication to continue to work in education, but also a commitment to create a world where every child has access to a good education. The young teachers receive training, mentorship, career development resources and a strong community committed to social justice. Several of the most innovative programs in education – from KIPP Charter Schools to The New Teacher Project – were founded by dedicated Teach for America alumni.
We must build a similar pipeline for global health – one that will produce thousands of leaders committed to health equity. Doing this will take significant investment. Teach for America spent $155 million in 2009. And this is just one of many efforts in education to train new leaders. In health we count on universities to do too much of the heavy lifting. Certainly, they are an important piece of the puzzle. But just as Teach for America is complementary to schools of education, and corporations’ leadership programs round out business school, we, in health, must build programs that support the rigorous academics of universities. Some foundations devote funds to building the leadership pipeline in health, but the examples are few and far between. Fortunately, some foundation leaders have shown a clear understanding of this challenge and opportunity; Bill Gates himself stated that the biggest challenge we face is getting the best and brightest to tackle our biggest problems.
We must respond to that challenge with wise investments. Success would include robust recruiting programs that harness talent of all types – from computer scientists to managers to epidemiologists. Success would also include strong training and mentoring programs for young talent, and reasonable salaries that will retain them. Most importantly, success requires helping emerging leaders develop a set of values that will inspire them to not just build careers in the health sector, but also to work toward health equity.
Though this endeavor will take many years, there are a few solutions that could be put into practice today to strengthen the global health sector’s leadership pipeline.
- Pay interns. Our sector limits the talent pool we draw from when we tell inspired youth that they must go elsewhere if they seek to be paid.
- Recruit more interns. Provide pathways into the field for young people with all the necessary skills in this movement – not just pre-medical students.
- Provide strong mentorship. Ensure you have a structured mentoring program that develops young talent.
Our world’s ability to provide quality care to everyone will depend largely on who steps up to work and create new solutions, and what values they bring with them. The millennial generation is knocking, eager to make a difference in global health with their talents, energy and commitment. Let’s open the door, and build a movement that will succeed.
Jonny Dorsey is Co-Founder of Global Health Corps and FACE AIDS. Barbara Bush is Co-Founder and CEO of Global Health Corps.
Dear Dr. Dorsey and Most Honorable Mrs. Bush,
I just returned from the Eastern Region of Ghana where I was working alongside an impoverished community of hard-working, gracious and welcoming families of the Krobo tribe. My plan, as health care coordinator of the Akaa Project (http://www.theakaaproject.org) was to assess the health care needs of the community, with an attempt to develop methodologies for intervention. As a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner at Children’s Hospital in Boston, and Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, I had the unique opportunity to live right beside the village families. An interpreter and Ghanaian woman leader accompanied myself and a small group of American students, to assist in the endeavor and translate. The families in this community rarely seek health care. In developing workable strategies, I was able to view first hand the complex web of tribal, cultural, religious, political, financial and social factors which affect the way families in this and similar African communities perceive health care. Often, families rely on faith healers in the form of “prophets.” There’s no question that global health providers face incredible challenges as they meet the multitude of health care needs of the world’s poor. Establishing trust, and mutual respect will go a long way toward building a workable health care program. I was delighted that upon leaving the community, the families in the village were asking for a health clinic on site, eager to move forward with this collaborative venture!
— Mary Grimanis on 2011-07-10