Nik Wilder: From Peace Corps to AmeriCorps

For the two years preceding my service year, I was a Peace Corps volunteer in a village in Tanzania. In addition to my primary assignment—teaching physics—I worked with my students by highlighting the importance of disease education and prevention. One project in particular was called Zinduka, a ten session program that predominantly focused on HIV/AIDS education and prevention, while also teaching malaria prevention and health skills. Individuals that graduated from the program showed an increased knowledge of HIV transmission and prevention. With the high prevalence and importance in Tanzania, it felt wonderful to impart this knowledge to my students.

However, health education is frequently not enough to make a difference. Poor infrastructure and limited resource access prevents people from making healthy decisions. For example, in my village, the school would predictably shut down every year because of water shortages near the end of the dry season, ultimately forcing students to stay home during the key time of exam preparation.  In order to combat this issue, I participated in the construction of a rainwater catchment system for my school. This system successfully prevented interruptions to school hours due to water shortages.

Through these experiences and my entire service in Tanzania, I decided that I wanted to be a physician. Providing healthcare to a person is more than a discussion in a doctor’s office; the doctor must understand where the person is coming from.  A physician must examine a patient’s physical, mental, and emotional health and understand the entire context in which a person lives.  Furthermore, problems with lack of knowledge and poor access and infrastructure, although prevalent in many developing countries, are not foreign to the US; in fact, certain aspects of Tanzania’s culture could be applied to reducing the burden of chronic disease in the US.  The current approach to chronic disease management and treatment is not effective, and I believe we should focus on preventing those diseases through long term changes to our lifestyle and culture. After first understanding who a patient is, I believe that we should provide information and guidance on achieving good health- physical, mental, and emotional health.

For me, participation in the Health Corps gives me the flexibility to delve into what I am passionate about. It is better than a job, it is a lifestyle. My site, Pittsburgh Mercy Family Health Center (PMFHC) is unique, because it has medical and behavioral health services all under one roof. We focus on patients with mental or behavioral health diagnoses, because patients with these diagnoses tend to die 20-25 years earlier than similar patients without these diagnoses. Our model for treatment aims to provide the care that these patients need, so that they can live longer, more fulfilling lives.

During my service with PMFHC, I am excited to explore my passion in chronic disease prevention and management.  I also expect to learn a lot from the people that I will be serving. I hope to coordinate a mobile medical unit, lead at least two chronic disease management therapy groups, provide various type of healthcare assistance to all patients, and perhaps discover new interests and passions. Most of all, I am eager to conquer the innumerable hills and bridges of Pittsburgh on my bike.