{"id":146316,"date":"2024-02-01T15:52:06","date_gmt":"2024-02-01T20:52:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=146316"},"modified":"2024-02-01T15:52:06","modified_gmt":"2024-02-01T20:52:06","slug":"gandhis-great-grandson-visits-wright-state-gives-lecture-on-health-disparities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2024\/02\/01\/gandhis-great-grandson-visits-wright-state-gives-lecture-on-health-disparities\/","title":{"rendered":"Gandhi\u2019s great-grandson visits Wright State, gives lecture on health disparities"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tushar Gandhi told a Wright State University audience of more than 300 on Jan. 31 a little-known fact about his famous great-grandfather, Mahatma Gandhi: He yearned to be a doctor.<\/p>\n

However, the strict conservativism of Gandhi\u2019s family beliefs \u2014 that touching the bones, tissues and blood of another was wrong \u2014 ended that dream. But that didn\u2019t stop Gandhi from tending to wounded behind battle lines while siding with then-British rulers.<\/p>\n

Such was how Tushar Gandhi opened his talk as the Earl H. Morris, M.D., Endowed Lectureship speaker in the Apollo Room of the Student Union.<\/p>\n

In his lecture, \u201cGlobal Health Disparities in Underserved Communities,\u201d Gandhi, a writer and director of the Gandhi Research Foundation, focused on his knowledge of health care disparities in his native country.<\/p>\n

Disparate they are, he said, noting the good care he received in his hometown of Mumbai during the COVID-19 pandemic and the poor care people in rural India received.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople were being treated in ambulances in hospital parking lots because there were no beds available,\u201d he said. \u201cMany families tragically lost loved ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also noted that rural India\u2019s poor water quality and lack of infrastructure, especially roads, contribute to the lack of good health care as compared to that in the cities.<\/p>\n

While focusing primarily on conditions in India, Gandhi said the issue of providing proper health care is not a problem for nations, but for humanity.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, discussed health care disparities during the Earl H. Morris, M.D., Endowed Lecture at Wright State. (Video by Kris Sproles \/ photos by Erin Pence)<\/p><\/div>\n

In a question-and-answer session afterward, he addressed a concern among many collegians: repaying student loans. He told the audience, mostly students, not to succumb to the anxiety of future loan repayments but to focus on getting a good education here and now, which is why they came to a university such as Wright State.<\/p>\n

Sankhadip Bhadra, a second-year biomedical sciences Ph.D. student who was in the audience, said afterward he was comforted by Gandhi\u2019s suggestion about focusing on education and gaining knowledge now.<\/p>\n

\u201cWright State has such a big population of students from India studying over here to escape the oppressive educational system in India that doesn\u2019t allow them to flourish,\u201d Gandhi told local media members following his lecture.<\/p>\n

He also lauded educational institutions in the United States like Wright State.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of the importance they put on the student. In India, it doesn\u2019t happen that way,\u201d he said, adding that it takes a heavy toll on Indian students.<\/p>\n

Gandhi\u2019s lecture was well-received.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was excited to see him and meet him and hear about the Gandhi legacy,\u201d Rajan Hirani, a 2023 graduate, said. \u201cIt was a wonderful experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe great thing about this event was that Wright State brought a world-renowned humanitarian to our campus,\u201d said Iwona Goodrich, a graduate public health student. \u201cI felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude for being involved with this wonderful experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gandhi spent the rest of his day on the Dayton Campus visiting with Wright State administrators, staff and students.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Tushar Gandhi visited with students during his daylong visit to Wright State’s Dayton Campus on Jan. 31.<\/p><\/div>\n

Since his arrival in the Dayton area on Jan. 19, he visited several places of history and interest in the Dayton area, including the International Peace Museum, Wright brothers and Paul Laurence Dunbar sites, and the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.<\/p>\n

\u201cDayton has been nice, despite the weather and the cold,\u201d Gandhi said. \u201cThe experience has been very nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

His lasting message is that each person can make a positive difference.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust do whatever you can. Nothing you do is insignificant,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, discussed health care disparities during the Earl H. Morris, M.D., Endowed Lecture at Wright State. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":66,"featured_media":146330,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,729,725,727,2016,715,2132,4293,720],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-146316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-around-campus","category-home-news-sidebar","category-homepage-photos-and-video","category-medicine","category-news","category-pharmacology-and-toxicology","category-student-union","category-video"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/66"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=146316"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":146346,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/146316\/revisions\/146346"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/146330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=146316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=146316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=146316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}