This summer, I interned at the Body Agency, a nonprofit organization with a mission to identify
and address healthcare gaps both internationally and domestically, while providing sustainable
solutions to public health concerns that disproportionately affect women and children. These
solutions include creating dignity kits for women in vulnerable conditions and poverty-stricken
countries, as well as spreading awareness on various health topics through multiple platforms,
such as podcasts, Substack, and social media posts.
In my role, I researched multiple health topics such as the benefits of breastmilk, HRT therapies
and menopause, and HIV/AIDS. There are many misconceptions surrounding these health topics,
and my goal was to inform the audience of valid scientific information in addition to providing
them with resources to continue to learn about these topics that may interest them. One of the
growing pains that I experienced was making the pieces I wrote interesting to a general audience,
with the assumption that they had no background in Public Health. I had to learn how to balance
the merit and validity of the science while making it engaging and relevant to the readers, which
is an important skill to have as I am interacting with community members as a public health
professional.
Another skill set I learned was how to create infographics for social media that were aesthetically
pleasing while also sharing the intended message. With such a limited amount of space and in a
time where attention spans are shortening, I had to get creative in ways to disseminate health
information. One of the pieces I created included a quote from Michelle Obama about the
misconceptions of HRT and the research surrounding this topic. I was so proud of the piece
because it created much traction and conversation under the post, and I can only imagine the
continual impact that the post had, as it could’ve been the seed to continue the dialogue on this
topic.
Overall, I learned important skills to have as a future public health professional and educator,
and I am grateful for both GW’s MCH Center of Excellence and the Body Agency for the
opportunity to learn and make an impact on the maternal and child health field.