Dr. Arielle Mancuso, PhD in International Health | Director of Research & Analytics at The Greystone Group/Implere LLC

In this episode, we discuss how Arielle’s experience in the Peace Corps inspired her to pursue a graduate degree in public health, the ways her multidisciplinary approach to her doctoral training helped her develop the skills to start her own consulting business while still in grad school, and her advice for setting small, attainable goals to boost your confidence both during the PhD and post-graduation when navigating the transition into the workforce.

Hosted by Brooklyn Arroyo

To connect with Arielle and to learn more about her story, visit her page on the PHutures #100AlumniVoices Project website.

Transcript

Brooklyn Arroyo

Hello I'm co-host Brooklyn Arroyo and this is 100 Alumni Voices Podcast, stories that inspire, where we explore the personal and professional journeys of a diverse group of 100 doctoral alumni from Johns Hopkins University. Today we're joined by Arielle Mancuso, PhD in public health. Welcome to The PHutures podcast, Ariel, how are you?

Arielle Mancuso

Thank you. I'm so excited to be here with you today. I'm doing well. How about you?

Brooklyn Arroyo

I'm also doing well. Happy it's Friday and and happy to be able to work with you and see where this takes us. So.

Arielle Mancuso

Absolutely. 

Brooklyn Arroyo

Yeah, I'm just excited to hear about how did you end up in pursuing public health and was that something that you always thought you were going to go down? That was the path that you knew that you wanted to do? What did that look like for you?

Arielle Mancuso

Sure. So, public health for me, I was always interested in health, I think from a really early age when my dream was to become a doctor. And it started, I think when I was about 14 or 15 years old in high school and my mom took me on a trip. We had been sponsoring a child in Honduras after Hurricane Mitch, and my mom took me on a trip to to visit Honduras and to meet the the sponsored child. And you know that really opened my eyes to to a whole new world, you know, a different way of of living and and, you know, some of the issues that that people experience around the world when it comes to health. So that was sort of my first experience and how I knew I wanted to go into health and and that inspired me to want to become a doctor. Then after I graduated with my bachelor's degree, I actually joined the Peace Corps and I was working on Health in Rwanda. And it was during this time that I really became more aware of and interested in the broader call of public health. And this is really the focus on prevention in addition to control or treatment and the impact on populations rather than individual. So then after Peace Corps, when I went back to the United States and I started in the Masters of Science program in public Health at Johns Hopkins, and that's really where I got my educational background in, in public health and and continued from there on to the PhD program.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Wow. So, you really did have a beautiful beginning of caring about people and I think wanting to positively impact humanity in a variety of different ways, however that looks, and and that's really why a lot of people should and do go into health. And so, do you feel that within your PhD experiences, those uplifted your sense of humanitarian work, your sense of wanting to help people? Do you think that uplifted that spirit?

Arielle Mancuso

Oh, absolutely. And I think, you know, going into the PhD program, you know I my experience in Rwanda and actually I should say I was there for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer living in a small village and then extended my service to actually work at the national level, helping to coordinate volunteer programs. And then actually stayed on for an additional year working on a USAID Health system strengthening project there. So, I got the full spectrum, you know of, of living and working in a in a village all the way up to sort of working at the national level in, you know, the Ministry of Health and that, you know, really became a frame of reference for me in terms of my education and and thinking about, you know, health systems and how, you know, health systems operate in countries around the world and also the motivation. You know you you see things when you are a Peace Corps volunteer that are really the the motivation and inspiration for continuing in public health. And for example, you know when I was living in in the village in my my house in the village, I shared a compound with a Rwandan family. And I lived across from a woman who was pregnant and went into labor 2 hours away from the health facility. And you know, what did they do? They there was no sort of emergency transport. So, they backed up a pickup truck, put a mattress in the back of the pickup truck and drove her to the nearest health facility. And you know, you're looking at that and you're just thinking, wow, you know, these are the types of issues that, you know, occur in countries around the world. And, you know later on, I had the opportunity to work with the Ministry of Health to set up, you know, a program that they were designing and trying to implement that was called rapid SMS that enabled text messaging between community health workers and health facilities for pregnant women, and so that, you know, those types of experiences when you're in the village or in, you know, these low- and middle-income country settings, you know, really are the foundation that, that drive and motivate you in this work.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Definitely. And the biggest, it sounds like every day is a new lesson, and lessons within each day in itself, and so it just sounds like a plethora of of learning that takes place in those two years, you know, things that can't, some people can't learn in entire lifetimes. So, I think that that's a really amazing experience that you were able to have and in what ways do you think, you briefly touched on it, but now in the work you're doing currently, do you still feel that the the experiences you had within those years like impacts the work you're doing day-to-day now?

Arielle Mancuso

Absolutely. You know, I think some of my work now has has shifted. You know, I'm I'm no longer as focused internationally as I was then, you know, I've shifted to more of a domestic focus. However, I will say you know, there's a lot of health issues that we experience in this country as well and, you know, when it comes to maternal health, you know, that's that's one of the areas that you know is is a real challenge in the United States. You know, we have one of the highest maternal mortality rates. There's still, you know, disparities in the US in, in access to care and and outcomes. You know for certain populations and and women you know, so that that still is an area that I I continue to to work in. You know it has shifted a little bit. I think the technology piece is still, you know an area of interest. You know, when I was sort of first starting out or, you know, as a Peace Corps volunteer, you know, mobile health, digital health, these were all very, very new concepts. And I think as we're emerging from the coronavirus pandemic, that has really transformed and shifted the, you know, healthcare in this country and around the world. You know the digital technology piece is, you know, becoming so much more important and embedded in, you know, health and healthcare delivery. And so, you know, I do draw on those experiences and I think there's a lot that we can learn from, you know, what innovations and solutions have been, you know, tried in other countries around the world to our own context or bringing it from, you know, sort of, you know, countries to countries that are that have that are facing similar issues. So absolutely still to this day is is something that really does impact the work that I'm doing.

Brooklyn Arroyo

So now post PhD and in within your career, how did you approach making decisions about where you wanted to end up and not as professionally? Personally? How did you go about deciding where you are today and and why you ended up where you are today?

Arielle Mancuso

So, I am currently now I've started my own consulting business and I do consulting and contracting work in digital health and research and evaluation. Obviously, what that means for me in terms of making decisions in my career is, you know, I'm a very methodological, very analytical person. You know, decisions really come down to Excel spreadsheets and formulas, you know, I weigh pluses and minuses of any decision, so you know some of the things that I think have been most important, you know, for me to consider in sort of thinking about, you know, decisions in my career or things about you know, leadership, you know, really assessing who are you going to be working for. You know, does their leadership style work for me? You know, is this, you know, going to be a positive relationship? You know, I think about my own sort of agency and empowerment. You know, will I be given the freedom to really excel in this role? You know, that's something that, you know, I'm a very sort of self-motivated person. So, for me, that's something that I really you know, when looking at new opportunities take into account. You know also my own interest, is the work, something that is really you know innovative, is it dynamic, is it something meaningful to me? So, it's something that will sort of keep me motivated and interested for a long period of time. And lifestyle, you know, does it really work with my lifestyle and you know, some of the things that are important to me outside of work and I think that's, you know, a critical, you know, piece of of thinking about your career and making decisions about your career. So, I spend a lot of time reflecting on these things, considering, and some cases kind of projecting you know what does this look like for me in the future? And then I think the other piece is just really, you know taking into account sort of that inner voice or that gut feeling that that can really help to guide you throughout your career.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Yeah, I think that all of those are really great points in, in not just professionally or within your career, but just in life in general, taking into account the pros and cons. Nothing wrong with the good pros and cons list.

Arielle Mancuso

Sure. Glad you agree.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Do you feel that within the work you're doing, whether that's public health in general or specifically having your own your own business, that there has been any surprises or things that you weren't necessarily prepared and they came about in your work and you sort of had to figure out that hurdle and and how did you go about figuring out those hurdles?

Arielle Mancuso

Sure. You know, I I think some of the the things that you know have been you know, the biggest obstacles have really been, you know, or the biggest hurdles I've had to overcome, you know, has has really been sort of a little bit of lack of confidence in myself. You know, I think when I first started or you know when, you know I was, I was starting off and sort of thinking about starting my own business, you know it, I really was, there were situations I was in where I would be like the most junior person in the room, and I think it's a hard transition sometimes from being sort of, you know, with a PhD, sort of a perpetual student to, you know, emerging from the PhD and becoming sort of the expert in your field. And I think it takes a lot of patience and a lot of self-reflection and as well as sort of, you know, making an intentional effort to to speak up. So, for example, for me, I would always try to set small goals and and you know little things like OK, say at one you know say at least one thing in this meeting or next time you're gonna say two things, you know, it was things like that. And you know, I kind of found that when I did speak up, you know, the contributions I were making were, well, were well received. And that really helped to build my confidence, you know, so that has been one of the the biggest hurdles I think I've had to overcome and and sort of going into this this work. And I think one of the things that, you know, has really surprised me about, you know, this this job is just all the opportunities that do exist. I think, you know, once I sort of started in this this area, you know, I kept my eyes peeled for new opportunities and, you know, as I did that, I was noticing more and more and, you know, a lot of the opportunities at first, they didn't always appear, you know, as opportunities. It was, you know, something where they would emerge. And then, you know, I would kind of have to look at them differently or think about them, and then they became opportunities. So, I, you know, one of the the learnings from that was really to start challenging myself to see the opportunity in any situation. So instead of sort of having this mentality of, you know it's not right, it's not good enough. It's not perfect. You know, I would try to assess and say, you know, what does it offer for me? And you know, changing that framing, you know, around looking at at different situations or looking at different opportunities, you know really, really helped.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Yeah, I think that the sense of imposter syndrome and just lacking of of confidence in any capacity can impact people of all levels, right? We, whether we're at the entry level or PhD or at the point where most people do view us as the experts in those fields still going to have that those moments of do I really fit in this space? Am I the youngest one? Am I the smartest one? Am I the least competent? And I think that you brought up a really important, important piece of advice about just taking it one step at a time and in each space setting a small goal for yourself because those big goals that we all lay out for ourselves, can become really daunting.

Arielle Mancuso

Absolutely. And I will say that a PhD would be one of those, right? Because you know and or a job search, right? I mean, a PhD, you think about it. I mean, it's such a long commitment to something, you know, and it's very hard in the midst of sort of a long program like a PhD to to see the light at the end of the tunnel and you know, going through that experience, you know, it was all about setting, you know, smaller goals. So, you know, I remember when I was doing the literature review for my PhD and I was like, wow, I could never imagine getting through, you know, 2000, you know, going through and at least you know, selecting the ones that were of interest from 2000 articles, right? Like that seems like a a monumental task, but then you know what did I do? I broke it down. It was like, OK, get through fifty articles, 100 articles, every single day. And you know that way I could show progress and make progress. And it's funny, you know, coming out of the PhD program that you know now when I'm, you know working and in a professional capacity you meet other people who you know have PhDs and there's sort of that shared understanding. You know, we've we've all been there, we've we've been through it. We understand even if we don't understand the topic of the PhD. But I think that was certainly, you know, a lesson learned from the PhD experience that that does apply, you know, professionally across the board.

Brooklyn Arroyo

And the sense of community that does come from realizing that we're all going through it together and equally as scared and anticipate for whether we belong in these spaces. So, what have been some of the your favorite parts of working within within your business and public health and and the things that you're doing now?

Arielle Mancuso

Absolutely. You know, I think for me, my favorite part of you know, doing the work that I do is that feeling I I get when you know, I've made a new discovery. You know, I think it's that that feeling you have when you've been sort of working with some data, you know, staring at the results for days and days you know, and suddenly everything falls into place and and you can see the story clearly. Or you know that feeling you have when you've been sort of pondering a problem, looking at it from all different angles and suddenly, you know, the solution emerges. You know, it's it's those types of moments that, you know, I'm I'm really filled with you know, a sense of enlightenment and satisfaction and and those are the moments I I just look forward to. So, it's it's the AHA, you know, the AHA moments.

Brooklyn Arroyo

So, within your experience and within those aha moments, have you found a sense of, and we briefly talked about this, a sense of networking, a sense of community? Have you found mentorship opportunities within your professional career? And dow did you go about fostering spaces and connections like that?

Arielle Mancuso

Yeah, absolutely. You know, I I can't stress the importance of of networking. You know, I think it's a critical piece of of any job. And you know, and and mentors as well. You know, I I think it's it's really important to have, you know, people to look up to. I think over the years I've had, you know, many mentors and each of them have sort of, you know, provided me with the specific guidance I needed at that particular point in my sort of career develop educational development to to get me to the next step. And it's it's funny how, you know, mentors emerge right when when you need them. You know, I think mentorship can take many forms. You know, it can be sort of a short conversation. It can be a longer relationship. It can be, you know one tidbit of advice or it can be sort of an ongoing, you know, advising. You know, and I think the other piece is that it can really be insight on where you're headed or, you know, helping you to figure out where you don't want to go. Right. And and I think that's a a piece of mentorship that we don't often sort of hear or think about. You know, I think really the the challenge around mentorship is is being able to to listen and to be open to other people's experiences, their input and their feedback. You know, even I think sometimes if it goes through, you know, your internal processing or you're just taking it into account as a factor for consideration. You know, because at the end of the day it's it's you making the ultimate decision, right? So, you know, you can take it all in be a sponge, you know, absorb what you can learn from, you know, your mentors. But ultimately, it's it's for you to sort of consider and decide where you know how that is gonna fit into your decision-making process. And I think, you know the other area that is that I've, you know drawn from is, you know, biographies of people who I admire. I know it's not, you know, sort of in person mentorship, but, you know, reading biographies or, you know, hearing stories or watching movies about the people who, you know, inspire me. You know, I I find I can learn a lot for my own career and that almost becomes a a form of, you know, mentorship.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Right. And sort of the idea that you bring up that I think it's really powerful is like personal mentorship. Looking at your past self, seeing where you are going to be tomorrow where you were yesterday and and sort of fostering a relationship with yourself in order to empower yourself. I think that's really interesting and an amazing point to bring up. And, yeah, it it brings me to the next question of so what does the next phase of your career look like for you, if you've thought about that yet? And and and what does, yeah, what does that look like for you?

Arielle Mancuso

Sure. You know, for me, I think you know I'm at the point where, you know, I've been, I've started my own business. I started it during the PhD program. You know, I had the opportunity to work with several clients, you know, during the PhD program. And then, you know, had the opportunity for for those to you know advance and become more after you know, I graduated with a PhD. And so, I'm working from sort of this solid foundation of, you know, doing consulting work in my business. So, I've I've continued that post PhD, but I'm getting to the point in my business where I'm starting to think about the future and you know, how do I grow this business? You know, where do I want to go from now? How do I market myself to new clients? And you know, we were talking about networking and the importance of, you know, networking to help with sort of career you know growth or development. But I think also, you know, starting to think about, you know in, in terms of the business you know how to sort of use my network to find new opportunities. And so, for me, what I'm I'm hoping and in the my career going forward is that you know I can I can figure out you know where I go from here, how to how to grow my business and I have the opportunity to continue consulting for more clients doing more you know of this type of consulting and research work and really, staying at the sort of cutting edge of of technology and innovation, which is where I'm, you know, really enjoying being and and thriving.

Brooklyn Arroyo

So, what advice for those who are just starting out in the path that you're on, what advice would you have for someone who's entering public health or really business in managing within public health specifically, what advice would you have for those who are just starting their paths?

Arielle Mancuso

Sure, you know, I think, you know, there's so many different facets of of public health that I think, you know, for me, from my experience, you know, for for people who are going into research, you know, I think it's really about learning all the methods you can, you know, while you're in school. I think the methods are just so critical. You know when you're in sort of an educational program, it's it's, you know, getting that exposure to all the different methods. But I think really important is digging into them, you know, and getting getting that hands on experience. You know, there's really nothing better than than learning by doing, especially when you have sort of the guidance of your professors. And I think once you get out of the school environment, it's it's very difficult to find ways to learn or practice those new research methods. So, you know, if you just getting that exposure like while you're in school and really you know having enough sort of knowledge of of different research methods that once you get out, you're able to apply them and and you know apply them in your job. I I think that's really important. You know, for those who are really sort of looking at the innovation or technology piece of that, I think not to be afraid to look outside of school or or the particular industry that you're that you're you're you're looking to work in to, to learn new things. So, I think sometimes you know the best learning can come from the real world and other times it might come from places that you don't expect. So, for example, when I was at Hopkins, you know, I took a lot of classes, classes outside of the School of of Public Health and I learned all about entrepreneurship and management consulting, computer science and digital technologies, and these are all things that are really important to to my work today. But you know, it was it it made me sort of look outside of what was being offered in the School of Public Health because in some cases they weren't offering all you know courses around all the things I was interested in, so I had to look elsewhere and. And so, I think you know, if if you're interested in technology and innovation, sometimes we have to do that. You know, I think for the people who are interested in sort of the business aspect of it, it's really important to to, you know, to build that network. But to talk to the people who are in your industry and doing something you know similar to what you want to do and to find the people that you can look up to who you could follow, who can collaborate with, who you can learn from. You know, I think that that business world is a is a little bit different than sort of what we're used to in in, you know other sectors. And so, you know it is one that is you know really based on on you know the networks that you that you develop and so that's very important.

Brooklyn Arroyo

And I I just wanted to say that I appreciate your mentorship today because I found myself inspired by the things that you've brought up and the things that you've talked about. So, within my own experiences, you've already been helping me. But our final question of each interview sort of the grand finality, grand finale of each of our interviewees, and that is what inspires you right now?

Arielle Mancuso

Absolutely. I was so inspired, you know, by so much and it and it's great to to have these conversations. I just want to say thank you to you, you know, and and the team for putting this together. I think it is a wonderful opportunity to, you know, share these experiences and I always look to learn from other people as well as to you know, pass on any learnings or support other people in any way that I can. So, you know, it really is a pleasure. What inspires me right now, I think. You know, I'm really inspired by by the time we're in. You know, I feel like our world is in sort of such a state of transition. And there's so many sort of challenges to be addressed. You know, when it comes to health, I think these last couple of years have been incredibly challenging with the coronavirus pandemic. But it's also sort of brought in a new era of digital innovation and transformation, you know, and I I think there's so many new opportunities to think differently and to do better health and healthcare delivery. And you know and and I'm just thinking about sort of this new you know time that we live in where you're seeing this integration of sort of health systems and daily life. You're seeing, you know, telehealth and remote patient monitoring, smart systems, consumer health products, the Internet of things, artificial and machine learning, virtual reality. All these examples of innovations that, you know, can really be a part of the future and and can make a difference in achieving, you know, health for all. You know, so that's that's something I'm I'm thinking about and really inspired by right now. I think I'm also inspired by my daughter. So, I have a 1 1/2 year old. Her name is Aubrey. And she she's precious. She, you know, she really inspires me to think about, you know what I want the world to be like when she gets older. And you know the world, the role I want to play in in sort of creating this future for her. So, you know, that's been a, you know, motherhood has been you know, a really inspiring experience and and you know, I just think about, you know, what I can give to her and and what I want the world to to be like for her. So, that's been incredibly inspiring as well.

Brooklyn Arroyo

Definitely the the future has a lot to hold and I I think that we in a lot of ways progressing in positive directions, so I I do think that that there's a lot of inspiration that comes with the future. Definitely. Well, again for coming to the PHutures Podcast and speaking with me and I've thoroughly enjoyed it so.

Arielle Mancuso

Absolutely. Same for me, Brooklyn. It's been so nice to meet you and to speak with you and thank you.