Genesis Ortiz

Philosophy Statement

I grew up in a household where food stamps were essential for survival. My father
works in landscaping and my mother works cleaning hospital rooms, and money has always
been tight. My family has been living paycheck to paycheck ever since moving to the United
States. There have been times where my parents have gotten sick and to avoid going to the
doctor to seek help, they would go to work even if they were in physical pain because they
could not afford hospital bills. I grew up feeling incapable of helping my parents. Therefore, I
chose to study public health because I want to help low-income families especially those who
speak Spanish like my parents. Growing up, I had the responsibility of translating because in
most health settings there were a lack of Spanish speakers to assist my parents.
In my family, no one works in a health-related field, however, I have always been
interested in it. I have dreamt of making a difference even if I only happen to change one life,
because I can remember all the times my parents have felt relief whenever there is a Spanish
speaking nurse or doctor present. I also learned about how powerful public health is. In my
first week of taking Foundations of Public Health, I learned about how in ancient cities,
public health interventions began to focus on sanitation especially in factory workers. People
had to protest for years but this resulted in better working conditions and the number of
deaths in the workplace was also reduced. This would not have been possible if it had not
been for public health efforts. We also learned that public health helps address systematic
inequities that affect health such as access to necessities. One study we focused on in this
class showed that between 2010 and 2015, people living without basic resources could pass
away up to 20 years earlier compared to those living closer to these resources. Therefore, it is
important for everyone to have equal access to basic resources.
Everyone deserves to have access to basic health necessities despite their economic
status and no one should have to fear going to a hospital because of lack of people that speak
their native language or stress about what the bill is going to be. In middle school,
specifically the 6th grade, I had to take a health class where we learned just a small amount
about our bodies as males and females. However, we did not learn about the specific names
for each anatomical structure, and most schools do not provide health or sex education
classes. In my Foundations of Public Health class, I learned about how the National
Assessment of Adult Literacy found in 2003, that only 12 percent of adults have health
literacy skills. This number has remained the same even today. We learned about how most
adults will take their children automatically to the emergency room for problems that are
minor. Therefore, it is important for there to be more public health professionals to help
educate others so that they may make better decisions for their own health.
I am currently working on my bachelor’s degree; however, I hope that I will be able
to obtain an internship at Mayo Clinic for my final semester of college. I am still uncertain as
to what I plan on doing after I graduate. I am torn between pursing nursing and epidemiology.
Both would be beneficial to society because I would focus on helping underprivileged
families whether I become an epidemiologist or a nurse. Epidemiology is fascinating to me
because it focuses on studying infectious diseases and providing ways to prevent people from
getting sick which is the goal for public health professionals. We want to help people in the
primary stage, we want people to avoid getting sick in the first place. However, nursing has
become interesting to me as well because then I would be able to build one- on- one
relationships with future patients. No matter what I choose, either to become a nurse or
epidemiologist, my main goal to help those from low-income families and those who speak
Spanish as their primary language remains the same. Everyone has the right to health;
everyone deserves to have the same resources provided to them. I want to help reduce the
suffering of others and to help empower others and help them make better health choices.