2011 Global Health Awareness Week

GHAW2011_2TransparentFrom April 4-9, 2011, the Global Health Awareness Week at USC explored a broad range of topics emerging in global health and the environment, including environmental sustainability, global health policy and interdisciplinary integration to improve environment health. The week of events featured engaging lectures, networking opportunities, exclusive movie screenings, and a community service event.

USC Events:

Monday, April 4

Global Health Awareness Week Kick-Off

12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. | USC McCarthy Quad — Kicking off GHAW 2011: Global Health and the Environment was a fundraiser for Japan. Students showed their support for earthquake relief efforts by purchasing and decorating a pair of TOMS Shoes for $45 and/or reusable grocery bags for $5. Of the proceeds, 30 percent contributed to Japan’s Earthquake Relief Fund.

Global Health Student Photo Exhibit

11:30 a.m. – 12:50 p.m. | HSC Quad — This global health student exhibit showed the international impact of USC students at work all over the globe.

Lunchtime Speaker Series: David Baron, D.O., M.S.Ed

HSC McKibben Hall 149 — Dr. David Baron shared a global perspective about mental health. Baron is the vice chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the psychiatrist-in-chief at USC University Hospital and USC Norris Cancer Center. He is a leading sports psychiatrist, concentrating on adult deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Tuesday, April 5

Lunchtime Speaker Series: Scott Fruin, D.Env.

2:30 p.m. | USC Tutor Campus Center 227 — Dr. Scott Fruin is an assistant professor of environmental health at the USC Keck School of Medicine. His work focuses on population studies on air pollution, especially in urban and industrial environments. One of his major projects was on children’s daily exposure to pollutants while taking the school bus. In this event he discused the impact of air pollution within Los Angeles and on a more global scale, as well as new efforts that are being made to counter this dangerous trend.

Career Panel: Health and the Environment

11:30 a.m. – 12:50 p.m. | HSC McKibben Hall 149 — In this panel, professionals working in various contexts around the world tied together the relationship between health and the environment. They provided a valuable learning opportunity for students eager to explore careers in global and environmental health.

Wednesday, April 6

Screening of “Bhopali”

7:00 p.m. | USC The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108— “Bhopali” documents survivors of one of the world’s most devastating industrial disasters—the 1984 Union Carbide gas leak in Bhopal, India. Today the suffering continues, prompting victims to fight for justice against Union Carbide, the American corporation responsible for the disaster. After the screening, the film’s producers discussed the film and answered audience questions.

Thursday, April 7

Global Health Opportunity Fair

11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. | University Park Campus – VKC Courtyard
Students learned about opportunities to make a difference with organizations from the Los Angeles area. Attending organizations included the Peace Corps, Kaiser Family Foundation and Heal the Bay.

Lunchtime Speaker Series: Paul Holtom, M.D.

11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. | HSC Hastings Auditorium — Dr. Paul Holtom, associate professor of medicine and orthopedics as well as the program director for the Infectious Diseases Fellowship Training Program, discussed the rise of antibiotic resistance and what it means to patients and health care workers.

Friday, April 8

Presentation: The Salam Center for Cardiac Surgery in Sudan, by Anna Gilmore

2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. | USC Ronald Tutor Campus Center 227 — Learn about how global health and architecture combine with our guest Anna Gilmore, a project specialist for the Department of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. She is on the board of directors for Emergency USA, which supports programs that provide permanent, sustainable, high standard and specialized health facilities in places where war has devastated infrastructure. She will be showing a short documentary about one of their projects in Sudan, where they have built an efficient and environmentally conscious hospital for people without access to quality care. A guest speaker from the architecture field will provide an analysis of the project. Food will be provided.

Exclusive Screening of “Foul Water, Fiery Serpent”

5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | USC McKibben Hall 149 — Can you name the next disease to be eradicated? Participants at this event got a first look at the award-winning documentary “Foul Water Fiery Serpent,” which follows health workers in Africa as they battle to wipe out the last of the Guinea worms, parasites contracted through drinking water contaminated with their larvae. The worm can grow up to three feet inside the body before it exits through painful blisters, which can leave its host crippled for life. President Jimmy Carter has led the global campaign to eradicate guinea worm for the past two decades and this film has been made in cooperation with the Carter Center. The movie was scheduled to be released in late 2011.

Saturday, April 9

2011 World Health Day LA: Pollution Solutions 

12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. |Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park, Wilmington, CA —USC teamed up with UCLA, Western University, and community leaders to put on a community-wide event in Wilmington, CA.

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