The start was rocky. I was exhausted and still in hyperdrive from the June crazies. That said, they were not exactly organized either. They were still drumming up students (so that it would be more than 4; we ended up with 6), wanting they syllabus reformatted to the UC requirements, the course webpage not accessible to half the students, and no plans for me to meet with other faculty. All of this took a week to mostly get sorted out.
I teach all day on Friday (9am-6pm, 1 hour for lunch) and 4 hours on Saturday. In Santiago, almost all of the small stores close by 2pm on Saturday for the weekend. It changes one's patten of living. The campus is about 30-45 minutes away on the Metro. Yes, I am a seasoned subway commuter here, including being squeezed into a train car during the evening rush. Not fun.
Lisette and I have been asked by the Minstry of Health to consult with them to develop a plan for how to improve the national disaster and emergency plan. Lisette had been asked to do this because a former classmate of hers is now in the position in the MINSAL (as it is abbreviated here). So, we have been coordinating that consulting work as well. Lisette is moving to US at the end of June to start the PhD program at the SPH. So, she too is ultra busy getting ready for that major life change.
Our first meeting include a representative from WHO/OMS. The international scene is fascinating to me. How the WHO provides support, but not really. How the national health system is both centralized and decentralized. These differences come up in my working with the students in the course. The reliance on MINSAL, but not really.
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