Boise High School’s Summit has not been around long, but is becoming a rather big deal in our community. Summit allows students to voice their ideas through presentations to kids and adults alike. This year’s theme of social justice helps lead students to conclusions that are bound to educate and inspire Boise High’s student population.     

Sophomores Hallie Hinchman and Emily Mynar are among some of the passionate teenagers who want to spread their ideas through Summit. Their presentation, titled “Global Health Care: Our Responsibility”, is aiming to make their audience more conscientious of how we are very privileged to have the health care we do.

Their presentation will take an interactive format and delve deep into the issues of global healthcare- Hinchman explains “We’re investigating the current status of global healthcare and what we can do to improve it.” Hinchman adds on that her experience with service in third-world countries has helped her to realize that what we have access to is life-changing and we should never take it for granted.

According to the duo, it is important to “convey the reality of the everyday lives of people who don’t have substantial medical care.” The two girls hope that their presentation will “inspire some to dedicate some time to improving global healthcare standards.”

When asked why they think it’s important to make people aware of the issues with health care, Mynar said “I think that most of us take a lot of the things we have, like health care, for granted. I want people to recognize this more and to be grateful for the gifts and opportunities they have.” Hinchman thoughtfully elaborated that “It’s easy to grow up in the country that spends the most money on healthcare in the world and see it as the norm… when we look beyond our nation’s borders, we can realize the hardships that people face every day…”

In countries where there aren’t enough health workers, or medical care is too expensive for many, people are often left hopeless. According to HIFA, or Health Information for All, “1 billion people will never see a doctor in their lives.”

As students it is important we all realize that we are extremely fortunate to have the lives we do. We also need to face the reality that while we may have health care, many others do not. It may seem like a high schooler can’t do much, but that is simply not true. A good first step in the right direction would be to get involved at this year’s Summit and learn about what you can do with Hallie and Emily’s presentation.