My name is Margeaux Berroth and I am an incoming senior at Brown University, studying human biology. I am here in Puerto Princesa for a two month stay on a fellowship through the Watson Institute at Brown University to study a public health issue and document my experiences with Palawan State University (PSU) and Roots of Health. It has been just about three weeks since I arrived in Palawan, and have I been busy! After resting from my long journey here, I ventured out into the world with Susan Evangelista, a professor of English at PSU and Board member of Roots of Health. She brought me to Palawan State University to meet the President, Deans, and teachers so that I could become acquainted with the campus community. I was well received by everyone in University leadership, most of whom are women (in my experience, men seem to rule universities). They were excited about my research proposal on the health seeking behavior and health status of PSU students and hope to use the data or analysis for future programming and/or policy change.

Palawan State University sits on a hill overlooking mountains and Puerto Princesa Bay and is host to between 6-7,000 students; mostly female.  Many of the buildings are dated, and the infrastructure is poor, yet much better than I had anticipated. The campus is quaint. Full of nice trees and gardens, sprinkled with many signs reminding you to keep the environment clean, and preserve the land. When we arrived, the campus was a hive of activity with many new students waiting in long queues in the hot and humid sun to register and pay for classes. I was thankful for my university’s computerized system and I sympathized with, and was inspired by all the students standing in the unbearable heat determined to continue their education.

After my meeting with deans, the president, etc., I walked with Susan to her Literary Criticism course to meet her students and get familiar with the layout of the campus buildings. The students seemed very cheerful and eager to learn. It was evident that Susan was well liked among staff and students as she was greeted by friendly faces left and right. All in all, it was a good first visit and I am excited to be working at PSU with young people with whom I may find common ground — space in which they can share their health narratives, queries, and behaviors.

Two weeks ago I had my first independent opportunity to interact with students in the classroom at PSU. Susan was in Manila, so she asked me to meet her class for the day. It was an informal gathering in which I had the opportunity to introduce myself and my project. We talked about how we define health, how other groups (the World Health Organization for example) define health, and I introduced some topics taken from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. I asked the students to speak about health in Palawan, and had them answer some questions about how they get information about health, well-being, medicine, preventative actions and care (such as reproductive or sexual health precautions). I asked about where they or their families, or communities in Palawan go when they get sick, what forms of traditional healing they use, etc.   I began to notice a pattern as each student spoke up about these questions and informed me of the health concerns of themselves and their peers. Many students mentioned unwanted or “accidental pregnancy” as a very common occurrence among students, disparities in health care, poor nutrition and respiration issues. We ended the session with an activity I call Fear in a Hat, which allows the group to build trust and empathy while simultaneously allowing me to get a sense of their issues or concerns about health. I had them write down a fear or concern related to their own personal health or the health of their friends or fellow peers at PSU while remaining completely anonymous.  Then we had a couple of students pull the papers out of a hat and read them out loud to the class, and describe how they would feel if they were in that position or what they would do. The activity gave everyone in the class an opportunity to voice their thoughts without fear or pressure of judgment. There was a vast gap between the discussions we had been having during the sessions and the topics written about because the students could be more open and candid.

I took the rest of the papers home and looked through them as my eyes welled up with tears. Students wrote about multiple abortions, TB, prostitution, and dehydration/ malnutrition. What surprised me, as it came up so often was the perception of illness and lack of knowledge surrounding basic or general health issues. Many students cited being concerned about dizziness, fatigue, and breathing issues. Others mentioned being afraid of cancer and other non-communicable diseases as though they could catch these diseases from other people.

Exhausted from the morning, I sat looking out over Honda Bay pondering this fellowship opportunity with ROH and PSU. I realized that the only topics/questions worth pursuing are the ones that are hardest to talk about, because those are the ones that matter most. I feel as though I have many doors open to me in this internship, working with great people, with more freedom than I am used to. It is my sense that I will run into a few hurdles as I pull off the band-aid and pick at the scabs of a conservative society struggling to provide adequately for its people. We shall see what the following weeks have in store for me and these students!