Personal Narrative: Saskatoon, Canada
When I was only three years old, my family made the long 18-hour airplane trek from General Pico, La Pampa, Argentina to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. I lived in Saskatoon from the age of three to the age of thirteen.
This transition was a culture and language shock for my family and I. We were moving to a new country with a different language, different infrastructure, different cultures, and different demographics.
Demographically, General Pico, the city I was born in, has a population of 52 475. There is little to no multiculturalism with a majority of the residents being Argentinian, practicing the Catholic religion. The province of La Pampa, which stands for "The Plains" in English, is mostly a farming/agricultural province which …show more content…
It was very surprising for me to see people of African American, Asian, and First Nation descent along with multiple religions. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, with a population of about 200 000, has the second highest First Nations population among major Canadian cities at nearly 9%.
As a future physician, I am grateful for my transition from a homogenous community to a multicultural community. I have learned to respect the importance of diversity and I have realized that people from different backgrounds often provide different ideas and innovations that can improve society for everyone. Also, being able to respect one another will allow for a more peaceful experience for us all.
As a prospective medical student, I am fully aware about the sociocultural and socioecononomical determinants of health. In Saskatoon, I was exposed to the lower overall health and the decreased availability of health care services for the First Nations community. Furthermore, these limited health care services often undermined traditional native medicine. These experiences will encourage me to inform myself about the medical practices specific to my future patients' cultures. As a medical student, I would like to have the opportunity to give back to underserved populations, especially the Hispanic community, because my background and upbringing will allow me to empathize and respect cultural diversity, both …show more content…
Like Canada accepted my family and gave us numerous opportunities, I will attempt to visit and treat all patients fairly, no matter the
This transition was a culture and language shock for my family and I. We were moving to a new country with a different language, different infrastructure, different cultures, and different demographics.
Demographically, General Pico, the city I was born in, has a population of 52 475. There is little to no multiculturalism with a majority of the residents being Argentinian, practicing the Catholic religion. The province of La Pampa, which stands for "The Plains" in English, is mostly a farming/agricultural province which …show more content…
It was very surprising for me to see people of African American, Asian, and First Nation descent along with multiple religions. Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, with a population of about 200 000, has the second highest First Nations population among major Canadian cities at nearly 9%.
As a future physician, I am grateful for my transition from a homogenous community to a multicultural community. I have learned to respect the importance of diversity and I have realized that people from different backgrounds often provide different ideas and innovations that can improve society for everyone. Also, being able to respect one another will allow for a more peaceful experience for us all.
As a prospective medical student, I am fully aware about the sociocultural and socioecononomical determinants of health. In Saskatoon, I was exposed to the lower overall health and the decreased availability of health care services for the First Nations community. Furthermore, these limited health care services often undermined traditional native medicine. These experiences will encourage me to inform myself about the medical practices specific to my future patients' cultures. As a medical student, I would like to have the opportunity to give back to underserved populations, especially the Hispanic community, because my background and upbringing will allow me to empathize and respect cultural diversity, both …show more content…
Like Canada accepted my family and gave us numerous opportunities, I will attempt to visit and treat all patients fairly, no matter the