69: Public Health Student Stories with Hermela Assefa

Interview with Hermela Assefa

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Highlights from this episode:

1. Hermela’s public health journey thus far
2. CDC CUPS Scholar with the University of Michigan Future Public Health Leaderships
3. Being proactive in seeking opportunities (Habesha Health)
4. Becoming a Doula as an undergraduate

Episode 69 of Public Health Careers

Hermela Assefa is a Public Health student in the sociology tract at Franklin & Marshall College.

Hermela is an aspiring public health professional who is problem-inspired, people-driven, and equity-minded. She is determined to serve underprivileged communities to alleviate systemic inequities, racial injustices, and tackle the social determinants of health. She strongly believe that access to quality healthcare should not be a privilege and she strives to develop culturally sensitive and robust solutions that advance health equity in all the work that she does.

Growing up an Ethiopian immigrant in a low-income community, she has witnessed numerous medical emergencies and conditions that were preventable. Even among those who seek care, culturally competent and patient-centered care is not accessible. This reality transcends globally which develops my passion to work in an interdisciplinary field that focuses on population-level health impacts. Hermela’s role as a community leader with Habesha Health has given her the ability to educate, empower, and mobilize my family and community members to improve their health.

This past summer she had the honor of becoming a CDC CUPS Scholar with the University of Michigan Future Public Health Leaders Program (FPHLP) and program intern with Henry Ford Health System (HFHS) where she developed an online resource hub focused on creating a comprehensive directory of employee lactation spaces within the health system. As she enters into her senior year of undergraduate studies at Franklin and Marshall College, she looks forward to engaging with the community as a Peer Health Educator and a First-Year Advising Mentor. As a trained birth doula, she also looks forward to exploring her passions for maternal & child health.

Hermela’s future goals, though not fully realized, will be aimed at working with underserved populations to eradicate racial health disparities and increase access to quality health resources while empowering and equipping communities to thrive. As she enters her senior year, she is open to learning more about opportunities in public health focused on developing her skill set around public health interventions and community-centered solutions driven by health equity.