Thousands of global health volunteers, most from the United States, travel to Africa every year. These volunteers come from diverse backgrounds and have varying levels of experience. They include surgeons, anaesthesiologists, nurses and medical students. They arrive with the ambition to improve health outcomes in Africa and learn about “global health”.
In my research I have studied the impact of these volunteers in Zambia. Between 2014 and 2016, I conducted research at a rural hospital where medical volunteers from the US provided various forms of medical care, including eye surgeries, caesarian sections, and treatments for malaria, tuberculosis and HIV.
In my latest research paper I examine how the presence of these volunteers affected the lives and relationships of people in Zambia.
