This winter I am teaching the INMED International Refugee Care Course. In January and February, we explored the notable crises in Venezuela, Yemen, Syria, and surrounding nations. 12 days ago, as hundreds of thousands of women and children fled Ukraine, an INMED learner remarked with angst, “My gosh, we are seeing a refugee crisis unfold […]
Why do we still have refugees? As critical as is this question, a thoughtful inquiry begins with still deeper questions: why do we still have war, poverty, or social injustice? One week each month, I am the emergency physician for a small Missouri town. Almost every patient is compelled to come to my ER suffer
Is the COVID-19 Pandemic simply a once-in-a-lifetime threat? Or rather, is this a warning of health emergencies to come? Today’s globalization of travel and commerce make communicable, infectious diseases much more transmissible person-to-person and nation-to-nation. August’s analysis by the Center for Global Development projects that the probability of another COVID-19-like pandemic in the next
700,000 Americans are now documented dead from COVID-19, making it the deadliest disease event in American history. This grim stat exceeds even the number of deaths from the infamous 1918 Spanish Influenza. To date, 400 million doses of highly effective COVID-19 vaccine have been given in the US and just now added is a
“Turbulence in Afghanistan – people fleeing their homes from the Taliban – is already provoking worldwide migration,” report my colleagues at the United Nations. “Like a ripply effect, desperate human beings running for their borders provoke greater insecurity among vulnerable people in neighboring nations, who in turn flee for safety. These ripples are becoming
Mother and children during the Great Depression. Elm Grove, Oklahoma, USA. Many people live on the margins of United States society due to race, language, ethnicity, income, immigration status, and more. The United States is distinct from other developed countries in that there is no single national health care system that provides access for
I have a small scar on my left arm – a reminder of the smallpox pandemic that killed as many as three out of every 10 people infected and claimed the lives of some 300 million people since 1900. The smallpox vaccination left this small scar. But today, younger persons have no such scar.
“If I am vaccinated against Covid-19, can I safely congregate with other people – especially if they too are vaccinated?” Such a compelling question! If “yes,” then reentering in-person life is a very welcome advance. If “no,” then such socializing risks disease or worse among those whom we value most. Vaccination is accelerating
In this TEDx presentation, INMED Founder and Dean Nicholas Comninellis Describes the plight of 70 million people today, the population of the entire southern United States, living as refugees in other nations – people forced from their homes by persecution and military conflict. The origin of his personal experience is twofold. In the 1990s,
Comprehensive community development is essential for human well-being. Growth in health, education, and economic activity contribute profoundly towards community development. But fostering such growth across cultures and amid low resources is a profound challenge. Today, INMED announces our newest partnership with an NGO demonstrating inspiring results: the Health Environmental Learning Program (H.E.L.P.) of Nepal.