How I will remember Dr. Paul Farmer
Dr. Paul Farmer was one of the world's most well-known names in global health. Expert in infectious diseases, he was acknowledged for his work both in the United States and overseas. As a young global health professional, I studied his articles during my graduate studies in the Netherlands, and when I moved to the United States, I hoped to hear him speak at one of his lectures. I knew he founded Partners in Health because it is a place where a lot of individuals sharing my background aspire to serve. His passing made me realize that, despite the widespread recognition, achievements, and insightful commentary, I knew little about his journey or what made him such a unique character beyond medicine and global health. To change this, I read Tracy Kidder’s Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World, and a dozen articles, as well as watched the 2017 film Bending the Arc.
The following are lessons that I’ll remember most and try to be more mindful of in my own service:
The fight for social justice never ends
Dr. Farmer not only treated patients but also advocated for improved access to health care for the least fortunate who are unable to speak for themselves. He was vocal on their behalf at conferences and openly discussed injustice and inequity in his writing. He regarded health care access as a human right, not a privilege enjoyed by a select few. This is also a topic that I am passionate about. In times of doubt and frustration, I remind myself that as long as there are people around the world who lack access to health care, my contribution is meaningful.
To help effectively, immerse yourself in the communities you serve
Dr. Farmer spent a significant amount of time in Haiti long before starting his medical studies and spoke Creole fluently. Later, he appeared to prefer being there to living comfortably in Boston. As a result, he was aware of the issues that his patients and the healthcare system were facing. As we have seen many times in global health, funding agencies aiming to scale up or transfer health services to low-resource contexts usually lack such in-depth knowledge of the system and cultural awareness, or overlook the critical role of local partners.
Social determinants of health matter
When patients return to an environment that exacerbates their illness, medical treatment is of little use. Dr. Farmer was well aware of this. In addition to being a physician, he was also an anthropologist. This broad perspective, I believe, was what made him such a competent physician. That is also why, in his work, addressing issues like poverty, access to water and sanitation, or education, as well as promoting community-based healthcare, were so important.
A happy man is one with a purpose
One aspect of Dr. Farmer's life that has impressed me as I've learned more about him is his incredible sense of purpose. He dedicated his life to helping others and persevered in the face of personal and professional adversity. He demonstrated on numerous occasions, such as raising funds for Partners in Health (PIH) or influencing global policies on multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, that he could achieve many of his seemingly impossible goals because he had a clear vision and unwavering belief in its importance.
If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together
Collaboration was at the heart of the creation of PIH in 1987. Dr. Farmer was well aware that in order to achieve his lofty goals, he would need a lot of people to back him up. For his patients, he was not afraid to seek financial assistance from others or to form coalitions to increase his influence. PIH is now a large multinational organization with headquarters in various parts of the world and a global impact that extends far beyond the provision of health services.
