When Imani Eugene signed up to go to Mandeville, Jamaica, this summer as part of the UNCG Global Health and Healthcare Professions study abroad, she expected the trip to strengthen her understanding of public health and deepen her interest in learning about other cultures and healthcare careers.
Eugene left the country with a newfound appreciation for Jamaican traditions and way of life.
“I learned about public health in the global context, while learning that non-communicable diseases are the leading cause of death in Jamaica,” she said. “Countless aspects shape the health outcomes. Throughout this opportunity, I realized that reading about a concept is one thing, but witnessing it in real life is an eye-opening experience.”
The 16 students and one graduate assistant on the trip represented several UNCG majors, including Public Health Education like Eugene, as well as Biology, Nursing, Social Work, Human Health Sciences, and Sport Management and Recreational Therapy, said Dr. Andrea Lewis, the faculty member leading the trip.
For many students, it was the first time outside of the U.S. For some it was the first time on a plane.
Learning More About Public Health
During the two weeks the students were on the trip, they shadowed clinicians at medical centers, toured a public and private hospital, worked alongside doctors doing medical outreach, provided health education and promoted dental hygiene among children, and learned about Jamaican culture.
This included taking blood pressure and checking the glucose levels of individuals, as well as checking their height and weight, Lewis said.
“Some students were already CNAs, but some didn’t know how to do these things. We had a nurse in Jamaica train them,” she said. “The students learned to communicate results using locally familiar and accessible terms, such as ‘pressure’ instead of ‘blood pressure’ and ‘sugar’ instead of ‘glucose,’ reinforcing the importance of adapting health communication to the cultural and linguistic context of the community.”
The students were also first aid certified while in Jamaica.
“Throughout this experience, I was consistently motivated to challenge my own assumptions and biases allowing me to have a greater awareness of the harm in single stories, as they can poorly influence how a community is perceived through a narrow lens,” Eugene said.
Upon graduation in the spring, she plans to go to graduate school and earn her master’s in public health (MPH).
She said she’s glad she was able to go to Jamaica to see public health in a different environment.
“I aspire to improve health outcomes of underserved and marginalized communities, with the goal of eliminating health disparities through outreach, education, advocacy, and research,” Eugene said. “I enjoyed observing medical professionals in clinics and learning about the Jamaican healthcare system. This was very helpful in my understanding of professional avenues in healthcare, as studying abroad in Jamaica increased my knowledge of different directions I could take after receiving my bachelor’s.”
Experiencing Jamaica
Everyone on the trip was immersed in the country, living in homestays with Jamaican families. They also took Patois classes, learning some creole that is spoken in the country.
The students learned more about the nation’s culture by taking a cooking class, reggae dance class, and going to the beach.
They also spent time in the community in Parottee Bay, which was heavily impacted by Hurricane Melissa in October 2025. They painted houses that had been rebuilt and talked to people in the community.
“This was a very powerful experience,” Eugene said. “It caused me to consider things that I typically complain about in my life, and I realized how minor my complaints were compared to the current conditions of the residents in Parottee as they recover from Hurricane Melissa. The way the people in this community still had their heads held up high, the way the flowers continued to grow, and how the children continued to laugh amid adversity was very inspiring.”
Lewis said it was interesting to watch the students grow on the trip. She chose Mandeville, an inland mountain town, in part because she wanted them in a region outside of the typical “resort” image of Jamaica.
“This trip challenged them in unfamiliar settings. They grew more adaptable, more reflective,” Lewis said. “It was great to see them gain confidence and become more engaged. They came back with a new understanding of themselves and their future professions.”
Eugene agreed.
“This trip provided me with a newfound appreciation for both the community and the environment. My experiences were both refreshing and valuable. This experience caused me to be highly appreciative of my accessibility to things I never had to think about before the trip,” she said.
By Sarah Newell