​Today I am boarding a flight to Beirut, Lebanon, once hailed by the world as the “Paris of the East” for its booming tourism industry, now better known for the one million Syrian and Palestinian refugees it shelters and grants asylum. Today marks the beginning of a three-month project seeking to illustrate local trends of uropathogenic E. coli antimicrobial resistance present among Syrian refugees, Palestinian refugees, and Lebanese natives living in Burj al-Barajneh refugee neighborhood. Compiling these profiles of resistance will hopefully assist local healthcare officials in guiding treatment regimens of UTI patients to avoid exacerbating resistance, in addition to shedding light on the genotypes associated with resistance amongst E. coli strains in the Middle East. This information represents a critical addition to combatting the growing prevalence of antibiotic resistance in the region.
 
To prepare myself for this project I am listening exclusively to Arabic podcasts and news reports in the Lebanese dialect to immerse myself fully in the language. Polishing my Arabic language ability will be crucial for engaging with refugees in a culturally-sensitive and appropriate manner. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work in Lebanon alongside a local university in central Beirut, the American University of Science and Technology, which houses some of the leading minds in investigating communicable disease among local refugee populations. I know that this experience will educate me beyond any expectation, and will challenge me both intellectually and emotionally.

Johnny Auld
MPH Student in Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology