My Nonprofit Reviews

The program is fairly new, and there are a lot of kinks to be worked out as they develop themselves more. But the heart of the program (pardon the pun) is golden, and I really appreciate the opportunity I had to share in their global health initiative.

The initial cost of the internship is high, but if you can afford it (get a grant or have a fundraiser or something), it's pretty rewarding to see where the money goes to. During my internship, Dr. Detrano gave EKG's to patients with heart murmurs and diagnosed congenital heart disease. So to hear about what diseases some of the kids had, what could happen if they weren't treated, and then to know that the surgeries are paid for in part by our donations is cool.

During my internship, we screened kids in rural schools every day. We knew what districts we needed to research, and although I didn't know exactly how far away each school was, I didn't ask, either. So long as we were achieving our goals. Having a stethoscope in your ears every day for an extended period of time gets to be painful, so you have to learn to manage that, but I also understand not all internships are like that.

I enjoyed the chance to experience Chinese culture. Everyone there is really friendly (especially when you're white and you walk into the park of a town where no foreigners live and a bunch of kids want to play tag), including school administrators who insist on your joining them for dinner, even when you're tired from work and just want to go back to your hotel and crash. That and the feeling of making a difference make the work really rewarding.

It's also apparent to me that Dr. Detrano, the founder and current director of ChinaCal, is really dedicated to making his ambition of curbing the rising epidemic of CVD in China. He started learning Chinese in his 60's, and I remember that during our internship, he would ask the interns (including myself) about what kinds of fundraising techniques might work at a college level. He talked about social networks, how effective were they, that sort of thing. He just comes off as really passionate, and I love that he's steering this program.

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