SPH Coursework
Public Health Core Classes
Public Health became the space where science met people, systems, and communication. Through coursework on social determinants of health and population-level thinking, I learned that knowledge alone is not enough if it cannot be understood, trusted, or accessed. Working with others reinforced that impact depends on how information is shared, not just what the information is. I started to see healthcare as something shaped as much by equity, access, and trust as by data and science. As Hans Rosling’s idea suggests, numbers matter, but without context and communication, they are incomplete.
Association between Marijuana Usage and Academic Performance
Trauma-Induced Substance use for Indigenous Populations in Canada
Drugs and Society (SOC 376)
This course was one of the most influential parts of my academic journey, reshaping how I understand drugs not just as substances, but relating to broader social, political, and economic systems. Learning frameworks like the Iron Law of Prohibition, Goldstein’s violence typology, and the role of medicalization and pharmaceutical influence helped me see how drug policy often shifts harm rather than reduces it. From the opioid crisis to the War on Drugs, I learned how enforcement, corporate interests, and structural inequality shape both health outcomes and lived experiences.
What stood out most was the consistent connection between public health and criminal justice. Topics like harm reduction, decriminalization models such as Portugal, and programs like LEAD reframed addiction as something better addressed through care, stability, and access rather than punishment. As I move toward pharmacy, this class has deeply influenced how I think about the role of healthcare providers, not only in treating disease, but in engaging with systems that determine who receives care and under what conditions.
