Against the Odds: Making a Difference in Global Health
Encyclopedia
Against the Odds: Making a Difference in Global Health is an exhibition that opened to the public at the United States National Library of Medicine
on April 17 2008. The exhibition explores aspects of the history of global health as well
as contemporary issues and "champions holistic solitions to health problems." Materials from the History of Medicine Division of the library are on display alongside artifacts and images gathered from around the world. Featured stories include the Barefoot doctors
of China, the impact of Hurricane Katrina
on health care in the Mississippi Gulf region, the work of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines
, and activism and the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power
.
and an advocate for people living with HIV and AIDS, and Dr. H. Jack Geiger, a co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility
and director of one of the first community health centers in the United States at Mound Bayou, Mississippi
. The panel also included Niko and Theo Milonopoulos, who founded Kidz Voice-LA and Vox Populi after a series of shootings in their hometown, North Hollywood, and other young activists involved in global health issues.
United States National Library of Medicine
The United States National Library of Medicine , operated by the United States federal government, is the world's largest medical library. Located in Bethesda, Maryland, the NLM is a division of the National Institutes of Health...
on April 17 2008. The exhibition explores aspects of the history of global health as well
as contemporary issues and "champions holistic solitions to health problems." Materials from the History of Medicine Division of the library are on display alongside artifacts and images gathered from around the world. Featured stories include the Barefoot doctors
Barefoot doctors
Barefoot doctors are farmers who received minimal basic medical and paramedical training and worked in rural villages in the People's Republic of China. Their purpose was to bring health care to rural areas where urban-trained doctors would not settle...
of China, the impact of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
on health care in the Mississippi Gulf region, the work of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines
International Campaign to Ban Landmines
The International Campaign to Ban Landmines is a coalition of non-governmental organizations working for a world free of anti-personnel landmines and cluster munitions, where mine and cluster munitions survivors see their rights respected and can lead fulfilling lives.The coalition was formed in...
, and activism and the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power
AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power
AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power is an international direct action advocacy group working to impact the lives of people with AIDS and the AIDS pandemic to bring about legislation, medical research and treatment and policies to ultimately bring an end to the disease by mitigating loss of health and...
.
History
The exhibition was developed over three years of research by the Exhibition Program of the History of Medicine Divisison. At the exhibition launch on April 16 2008 an audience of young people from Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia heard from a panel of speakers that featured Jeanne White Ginder, mother of the late Ryan WhiteRyan White
Ryan Wayne White was an American teenager from Kokomo, Indiana, who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States, after being expelled from middle school because of his infection. A hemophiliac, he became infected with HIV from a contaminated blood treatment and, when diagnosed...
and an advocate for people living with HIV and AIDS, and Dr. H. Jack Geiger, a co-founder of Physicians for Social Responsibility
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Physicians for Social Responsibility is the largest physician-led organization in the USA working to protect the public from the what they consider threats of nuclear proliferation, climate change, and environmental toxins...
and director of one of the first community health centers in the United States at Mound Bayou, Mississippi
Mound Bayou, Mississippi
Mound Bayou is a city in Bolivar County, Mississippi. The population was 2,102 at the 2000 census. It is notable for having been founded as an independent black community in 1887 by former slaves led by Isaiah Montgomery. By percentage, its 98.4 percent African-American majority population is one...
. The panel also included Niko and Theo Milonopoulos, who founded Kidz Voice-LA and Vox Populi after a series of shootings in their hometown, North Hollywood, and other young activists involved in global health issues.