Learning Experience: Health Disparities in African Americans Class

Senior year has been quite the year of new experiences, but nonetheless I’ve still gotten to take some great classes! For fun, I decided to take a nursing class this semester for one of my electives called Health Disparities in African Americans. I’ve always been interested in health classes and the medical field – probably because all my family dinners growing up were on the topic of medicine as my entire family (immediate and extended) all consist of doctors or surgeons. So, this Health Disparities class really interested me because I never had the opportunity before to take an elective on any topic similar – this is what I love about TCU; we have incredible opportunities to take classes outside our major/minor that still interest us. This class taught me a lot about how environmental factors, stress, de facto segregation and many many more inequities contribute to health disparities in African Americans. There are multiple disease states which disproportionally affect African Americans mainly stemming from exposure to multiple stressors such as financial obligation, occupation, relationships, and racial bias. Due to a wide array of factors like stereotype threats and invisibility syndrome, African Americans tend to face more life stressors than other ethnic groups. Additionally, I learned about many global initiatives that are addressing these health disparities and have had the opportunity to pitch ideas that I believe can help eliminate health disparities in African Americans. This class has been one of my favorites during my time at TCU and I’ll miss being able to take classes like this one that have nothing to do with my long-term career goals. It just goes to show that we are all made up of many different interests regardless of the major we chose. I recognize how blessed I am to be able to take classes like Health Disparities or even Sounds and Silences of Laughter – both these classes have allowed me to grow as an individual and work toward becoming a better global citizen in my community. TCU is better than I ever imagined it could be and I’m grateful for each and every class; as a senior, it makes this ending even more bittersweet.  

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