Dr. Erkeda DeRouen is joined by Shital Vora, a physical therapist and co-founder of the Global Brigades organization. As a founder of the Global Brigades, Shital tells the story of how she founded the organization and the milestones they have achieved to help communities in need of sustainable healthcare and economic resources.
- [01:30] Roles of Physical Therapist in Healthcare
- [05:10] The Global Brigades
- [11:07] How Students Can Get Involved in The Global Brigades
- [15:56] What Would You Change in Healthcare?
- [19:22] Involvement in Local Areas and Organizations
Establishing the Global Brigades
The Global Brigades was co-founded by Shital Vora back in her junior year after doing fieldwork in Honduras. The organization was established after their group encountered people who lacked healthcare programs and expressed gratitude and inspiration to individuals who flew thousands of miles to their location to help their community. Since then, the Global Brigade has expanded to house around 500 university chapters, generating approximately 100 Million dollars worth of aid, with a rough estimate of 90 thousand participants to assist in critical countries.
Student Involvement
The Global Brigades’ main objective is to collaborate with communities to reach their long-term healthcare, economic, and sustainability goals. According to Shital, the 3 key elements needed to make their goals sustainable are through healthcare, water, and capital. On top of these elements, another factor that needs to be taken into consideration to make the projects more sustainable is the community’s eagerness to take part and be involved in the program. In order for students to get involved, the organization would set up fundraising projects through their university chapters. From there, they can generate enough resources to help the target communities they can reach out to.
Reach out to Shital Vora through her LinkedIn profile. You may also want to check the Global Brigades’ website and Instagram account for updates, or you can email them at admin@globalbrigades.org. Got questions, feedback, or suggestions? Send a message to Dr. Erkeda DeRouen’s Instagram or MedSchoolCoach’s Instagram.
