When Jonathan Andreadakis first stepped into the slums of Faridabad, India as part of a medical mission trip, he was struck by a sobering thought: What happens after we leave?
“I suddenly realized that while short-term volunteer work is valuable, it doesn’t always create sustainable change,” he said. “That’s what led me to study public health—to learn how to build systems that continue making a difference long after we’re gone.”
Now a MPH student at the USF College of Public Health (COPH) with dual concentrations in epidemiology and global health practice, Andreadakis recently brought that vision to life during a service trip to Medellín, Colombia with the International Health Service Collaborative (IHSC), a USF Health student organization focused on promoting sustainable health in communities abroad.
The trip, part of a long-standing collaboration between USF Health and Universidad CES, sent an interprofessional team of students to Comuna 2, a densely populated neighborhood in Medellín facing complex health challenges.
As vice president of IHSC, Andreadakis played a critical role in planning and leading the mission.
“I found out about IHSC through a graduate student email list and felt my background in international medical work made me a good fit,” he said. “Joining the leadership team and taking part in the logistics, recruitment and execution of the trip taught me a lot about what it takes to get a project like this off the ground.”
The mission had three primary goals: to improve access to medical care, to deliver health education to the neighborhood’s residents and to enhance interprofessional collaboration between students from both universities.
Jonathan Andreadakis (third from left) with fellow IHSC students in Medellín. (Photo courtesy of Andreadakis)
The team’s work included a wide range of activities—from internal medicine and pediatric consultations to medication dispensing, geriatric exercise sessions, lactation education and cardiovascular risk screenings. They also hosted a two-day community health festival covering topics like reproductive health, first aid, dental hygiene and herbal medicine. In addition, students conducted home health visits tailored to community needs.
Public health principles were woven throughout the effort.
“Our home visits were structured using public health theory and we used the Health Belief Model, a framework that explains and predicts health behaviors by focusing on how individuals perceive health threats and decide to act based on their beliefs, to design our education stations,” Andreadakis said. “The goal was not just to treat, but to inform and empower people to make healthier choices long after we left.”
Medellín, Colombia (Photo by Andreadakis)
Despite the trip’s success, the team faced challenges, including language barriers. With only a quarter of the group fluent in Spanish, students had to rely on non-verbal communication and quick collaboration.
“That turned out to be a huge learning opportunity,” Andreadakis said. “It pushed us to think creatively about how we connect with others, even when we don’t share the same language.”
He also noted persistent public health concerns in the community, including stigma around mental health, environmental risks and a lack of reliable health information.
“Seeing these challenges firsthand broadened my understanding of what global health work really entails. There’s so much effort that goes into even the smallest changes,” he said.
For Andreadakis, the value of interprofessional collaboration stood out above all.
“Working with students from medicine, pharmacy and nursing reminded me how essential teamwork is in health care,” he said. “Together, we were more effective and made a greater impact.”
He has no plans to slow down.
“International health is my passion,” he said. “I will continue doing this kind of work throughout my career.”
To other MPH students considering a similar path, Andreadakis offers this advice: “It might seem intimidating at first, but it’s absolutely worth it. You’ll learn more than you ever expected—about yourself, about others and about the power of public health.”
USF Health International Health Service Collaborative
To support IHSC or learn more, visit the organization’s page.
