MS1 Community Health Electives:
NHH Past, Present, and Future
This multidimensional course exposes students to Native Hawaiian Health: Past, Present and Future, utilizing a combination of didactics, hands-on workshops, and field trips to connect the past with the present while looking towards the future. The goal is to produce medical students that can approach health and wellness holistically with their patients. Past: Students study traditional healing practices and the importance of the Native Hawaiian relationship to the land and environmental resources, with respect to health. Present: The current status of Native Hawaiian health, including health disparities, is examined through didactics, literature reviews and field trips to community agencies with innovative programs to improve Native Hawaiian health. Future: The future of Native Hawaiian health, specifically decreasing health disparities, is explored by learning about current research being conducted in Native Hawaiian communities and the translation of this research into practice. For more information contact Dr. Martina Kamaka at martinak@hawaii.edu.
NHH Nā ʻŌpio O Nānākuli (the youth of Nānākuli)
The Kuaola Program
The Kuaola program works with first-year medical students who thrive to inspire and mentor students at Nānākuli High and Intermediate school. Our students promote healthy living and disease prevention. The goal is to provide a “big picture” of health and begin to understand the social determinants of health that affect adolescents, their families, and the community in which they live. Unique to this program is the diverse monthly service-learning cultural field trips, clinical shadowing opportunities at the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, longitudinal mentor-mentee relationship, and school-based teaching modules that inspire students to become passionate about their health and academic success. The Kuaola program works closely with Nā ʻŌpio O Nānākuli medical students to improve the health and wellness of West Oahu children and their families. We welcome all MS1’s who thrive to inspire, lead, and mentor middle and high school students to be the best versions of themselves. Please feel free to contact Dr. Kelli-Ann Frank Voloch at voloch@hawaii.edu for more information.
