Hannah Imohi

Title of Work: 

The Effect of Healthcare on Life Expectancy

Abstract:

Over the past few months, I have conducted research on how accessibility to healthcare by Arizona and Aragonese residents influences life expectancy. In Aragon, Spain, all residents have access to free public healthcare while in Arizona, there is a combination of private and public healthcare systems that Arizona residents use. I compared the frequency of hospital visits by residents, visit costs, and the life expectancy rates in Aragon and Arizona. Also, I discussed my personal experience being a patient and what I saw shadowing at the Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa. From my research, I found that the life expectancy in Aragon is higher than that of Arizona and the evidence supports that there is a likely correlation between the accessibility of healthcare and life expectancy. From my experience, I learned that traditional Castellano is used in Aragón, so the local accent was clear except for the distinction that causes c, s, and z to sound like “th” due to the interdental fricative manner the locals pronounce them. Also, the pronunciation of words that start with a j or g is similar to that of a guttural “h” due to the palatal fricative manner they are pronounced. The Aragonese residents spoke in an emotive manner using their hands as well. I found that due to how laidback the culture is in terms of siesta or the very prevalent nightlife, most people were very informal, relaxed, and personable, so I felt safe most of the time I was completing my research in Zaragoza. 

Title of Work (IGP Language):  

El efecto de la sanidad en la esperanza de vida

Abstract (IGP Language):

En los últimos meses, he investigado la accesibilidad de la sanidad para los residentes de Arizona y de Aragón, España, también he estudiado su influencia sobre la esperanza de vida. En Aragón, España todos los residentes tienen sanidad pública gratuita mientras que en Arizona, hay una combinación de la salud pública y privada que los residentes usan. He comparado la frecuencia de las visitas al hospital, cuánto cuesta asistir al hospital, y la tasa de la esperanza de vida. También, hablé de mi experiencia como una paciente y de lo que ví en mi pasantía en el Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa. En esta investigación, descubrí que la esperanza de vida en Aragón es más alta que la de Arizona, la evidencia se apoya en la correlación entre la accesibilidad de la sanidad y la esperanza de vida. De mi experiencia, aprendí que usan Castellano en Aragón, entonces es fácil de entender el acento allí excepto que el distinción que causa las letras c, s, y zeta suena como “th” debido a la manera fricativa interndenal que pronuncian. También, el pronunciación de palabras que empiezan con j o g se parecen el “hache” guttural debido a la manera fricativa palatal se pronuncian. Los residentes de Aragón hablaron en un modo emotivamente con gestos. Me enteré que debido a la siesta y la vida nocturna, muchas personas fueron informales, relajadas, y simpáticas entonces me sentí segura mientras cumplí mi investigación en Zaragoza.

Elevator Pitch Video

Elevator Pitch Transcript: 

Hi, y’all! I am Hannah Imohi, a senior in my last semester here at Northern Arizona University, and last year I had the incredible opportunity to study abroad in Zaragoza, Spain with the Interdisciplinary Global Program. 

At NAU, I am studying Biomedical Sciences and Spanish. During the fall semester of my year abroad, I studied en la Universidad de Zaragoza where I took two biology courses, one philosophy course, and a grammar course. These classes were meant for native speakers, so they were very difficult. The next semester I took a Spanish intensive course for international students and had a better experience developing my Spanish to level B2.2. 

During the winter and spring semesters, I completed an internship shadowing at el Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa where the medical school students completed their fifth-year clinical rotations. There I completed 540 hours shadowing doctors, residents, nurses, and technicians in pediatrics, labor and delivery, and the biochemistry laboratory. 

For the first 200 hundred hours I was with Dr. Gerardo Rodriguez in pediatrics where I would attend the daily floor meeting and then make rounds visiting the newborn patients and performing newborn analyses to determine the baby's health. For the remaining 340 hours, I would rotate between labor and delivery and the biochemistry lab with Dr. Daniel Orós Lopez. In labor and delivery, I would attend natural births, c-sections, and other surgeries and assist in the consultation room where we assessed the birthing parent’s pregnancy progression. In the lab, I would assist in preparing for artificial inseminations and would shadow the doctors assessing the lab tests sent in from all units of the hospital.

I truly enjoyed my internship, but I did not perform any research on it. So, I decided to do a literature review on The Effect of Healthcare on Life Expectancy. In Spain, they have a free public healthcare system along with private healthcare. While abroad, I saw that many people lived healthier lifestyles in terms of work-life balance, access to affordable fresh groceries, and free healthcare. I wanted to look into how this supports the longevity and health of Spanish residents and how it contrasts with the American healthcare systems. I am very passionate about this because our health is not prioritized in America, so I want to see what does and doesn’t work to promote overall communal longevity in the U.S. 

Completing my intensive course, internship, and paper, all tremendously improved my Spanish, but my experience exploring Spain and interacting with the locals is what prompted my confidence and progressed my ability to speak in Spanish. I learned that traditional Castellano is used in Aragón, so the local accent was clear except for the distinction that causes c, s, and z to sound like “th” due to the interdental fricative manner the locals pronounce them. Also, the pronunciation of words that start with a j or g is similar to that of a guttural “h” due to the palatal fricative manner they are pronounced. The Aragonese residents spoke in an emotive manner using their hands as well. I found that due to how laidback the culture is in terms of siesta or the very prevalent nightlife, most people were very informal, relaxed, and personable, so I felt safe most of the time I was completing my research in Zaragoza. I am so grateful for the experiences I had traveling to other countries, meeting new people, and getting outside of my comfort zone. If you want to talk to me more about my time abroad, come to IGP Summit and I will tell you about it. See you there!

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