An Eye-opening Experience

Talar Kakilian,

My time here at Birthright Armenia has been eye-opening, to say the least. I’ve found out multiple things about my homeland that I had no idea about, especially when I came here as a tourist. I learned about work ethic in this country and what is and is not expected from work placements. I learned how to conduct myself in an Armenian professional setting. Most of all, I feel like I learned about so many of the differences between Armenia and America; differences that were obvious, like language, attitude, and cultural differences and differences that were not as obvious, like how developed and hardworking many of these businesses are. Prior to coming here, I had this preconceived notion that most, if not all, of the native-run organizations were poorly executed and that I would not learn as much as I hoped. But I don’t think I’ve ever been as wrong before in my life. Instead, I came to the realization that, although many of these organizations do need help and that extra push, they are fully functioning without that “American touch.”

 

Since the beginning of my Birthright experience, I have continuously said that this program is a test of whether or not I can make my dream a reality and eventually move to Armenia permanently to work here. By the end of the program, I consider Birthright a stepping stone for my move here. It has taught me about all the things this country needs from me in order to build it and make it more prosperous. At the same time, the country has taught me that I need it to survive and maintain my personal identity.

 

Although I am very sad to be leaving Armenia, I’m also incredibly excited to be able to start a new chapter in my life. Particularly, I’m excited to take what I have learned in this country and apply it to my studies (as I will be beginning graduate school in the fall). Having worked in a think tank and research center (Caucasus Research Resource Center-Armenia), I learned that although present, there is a significant lack of information and/or research pertaining to health policy and information. This is specifically the case for women’s resource centers, including maternal health clinics. Though there is some research, most is done by international organizations, and, in my opinion, lacks the empathy and support that these topics need from their home country. It is now my dream to be able to turn all of that around. One of the biggest issues that I’ve seen with these clinics tend to focus lack of information, cultural stigmas, and just, in general, lack of understanding of what these clinics actually do. From my own personal research, I have learned that there are hundreds of different clinics throughout the country. However, they are underutilized. I want to be able to come to Armenia and try to make them more utilized. In my opinion, healthcare is one of the most basic human rights and everyone should have the opportunity to be educated and learn about different aspects of health and healthcare.

 

During my MHA (Masters in Health Administration) studies, I plan to focus on these topics at school extensively. I want to complete most of my projects with regard to nations that are socioeconomically and culturally similar to Armenia. This way, I believe that I can really be able to grasp what sorts of tools that Armenia will need in order to create better health services for women. Moreover, during my graduate studies, I am expected to complete a practicum. Though it is likely that I will not be able to leave Los Angeles for this part of my degree, I do plan on working within the Armenian community. This way, I can learn about many of the cultural stigmas, as well as the different understandings and likes and dislikes towards healthcare (that many may have brought over from Armenia).

 

After finishing my MHA degree, I plan to work in the US for a few years to gain the practical skill sets I will need. Eventually however,  I plan to come back to Armenia and move here permanently, hopefully working in a field where I can implement my education. Essentially, I would love to work for a non-profit women’s resource center in Yerevan. There, I would like to know more about what women think about their health needs and show them different outlets of maternal health practices. Generally, I would like to revamp their market strategies and try to engage more women throughout this capital to utilize the sources that have been provided for them. I want to point out here that I do not plan on being this “white savior”; that will not be the reason for my return at all. I do not want to come here and tell women that everything that they believe in terms of cultural ideals and stigmas and everything they know is incorrect. That is definitely not the way to improve their healthcare. Instead, I want to be able to empower women here and show them that they can be in control of their own bodies and, in essence, their own health. I want to host events, while providing incentives, and try to understand their thought process. After that, I will be able to help them both personally, and as a group, to better their understanding of women’s and maternal healthcare.

 

After a year or two in Yerevan, I would like to move onto more remote villages and areas throughout Armenia. While traveling to Syunik on a Birthright excursion, I was told that many of these villages don’t have hospitals or medical clinics in their region, including (obviously) maternal clinics. This was worrying for me as they said that it would take upwards of 30-40 minutes to get to the nearest hospital, and that’s only if there was a car available. As such, I would like to create my own non-profit medical organization that can help these villagers. I’m not quite sure exactly how it would work out and what type of health I would specifically focus on, but that is definitely something I want to do. I believe that these villagers are the essence of Armenia and without ensuring that they are provided proper healthcare, I don’t know what will happen to these regions in a decade or so.

 

Though these are all plans for the far future (4-5 years later), I also plan to work within Armenian communities in the near future. As someone who was heavily involved in the Armenian Students’ Association in previous years, I hope to also be involved in such an organization during graduate school. It is there that I hope to organize conferences pertaining to health and healthcare issues in Armenia, as well as throughout the Armenian Diaspora. Knowledge is power and unfortunately, many of my fellow students, particularly in the Armenian community, tend not to know about information pertaining to health access and common health-related issues. This way, I will be able to influence a large group of people and a wide audience.

 

 

In essence, I hope this proposal shows you, the reader, how devoted I am to improving the health quality in this country. Like I stated before, I believe that every person deserves to know and understand their healthcare rights. Though there are several things that are lacking in this country in terms of healthcare, particularly with regard to maternal  health, I think that the essential infrastructure is there. All it needs is a bit sprucing up and I think that we can develop Armenia to be one of the most advanced countries in the region.