Wilkinson joined Catholic Medical Mission Board as its president and chief executive officer last month. The non profit has an office in Northwest Washington.
What is a global health organization?
We work around the world. There are three components to our work. The first is working to provide medical volunteers to various facilities around the world. We do send a lot of medicines around the world, which assist in varying ways with all developing countries. We also have on-the-ground staff that work implementing programming around health programs in Honduras, Kenya, Peru and Zambia — there are eight countries total where we have a deep presence.
What’s one of the big challenges facing these undeveloped countries?
Having a commiserate investment in health and education in each country. If you don’t have a healthy workforce, you can’t develop economically. And if you don’t have a well-educated and healthy workforce, that is a huge constraint on your development.
How has HIV/AIDS changed these countries?
HIV is really becoming a serious factor in these developing countries. Children are losing their parents, parents are no longer able to work. But with the anti-viral drugs, it’s really produced a revolution… Now it’s being looked at as a chronic disease that needs to be managed.
How you convey to Americans the importance issues affecting Africa?
You have to make sure they see some street credibility, that you’ve actually spent some time there and can put things in a language that people understand. Ninety-nine percent of Americans have never had malaria, but I’ve been in Africa and have had malaria six times, so I can say now what it’s like to get malaria and it’s horrible.
How did you end up in this line of work?
I grew up on a dairy farm in Southeastern Connecticut and I went into the Peace Corps right after college. I went to Ghana. I fell in love with Africa and have basically been working in Africa ever since. Most of my career has been spent overseas in Africa or in Europe.
— Susan Ferrechio
