A Word About Your Health

Amishi Shah

Health Policy Analyst for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 

As a health policy analyst for U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Amishi Shah has an excellent opportunity to combine her strong interest and experience in health policies with journalism. Having also worked at the Ohio Department of Health in Columbus, OH, she is able to connect the dots between the functioning of a State Government and the Federal Government in terms of health and human services. Her specific field is public health quality and she wants to bridge the gap between healthcare quality and public health which is no small task. World leaders have been trying to create a solution for years.

 

"As a former reporter and associate editor in Mumbai, India, before I came to the United States," she says, "writing has always been a passion and it was my desire to continue in journalism in America once I immigrated." But for Amishi, she says it was not easy breaking in to a field that continues to have its ups and downs in this digital age. It was not an easy decision for her to go back to school, but she did it and completed her second masters degree in Public Policies and Administration at the Ohio State University before moving to Washington D.C.  During this time, she made a conscious decision to keep writing in a professional capacity wherever I worked. It helped to build a combined portfolio of working in health policy and also as a writer. 

 

"Having gone through the whole process of education, I am proud that I took the time to complete school and look for a job. It was not easy to study economics and accounting as I have never studied that. But I did, and I passed! And as many would attest, it is not a breeze to juggle work, school and home," says Amishi.  "The fact that even after studying in this country, it is so tough to get a job if you are not a permanent resident or not a citizen (was challenging). I wish that could change and companies would be willing to hire an able and competent person even if she or he is on an international visa. I would try to change the fact that people on visas would get an equal chance if they are as capable as others."

 

Amishi talked about her mother as a major influence in her life. She offers, "A lot of what my mother, Meena Shah, said when I was young has stayed with me. She was unable to follow several of her desires. She always encouraged that a woman should be able to stand on her own two feet. Other than that, I won’t say I am influenced, but I am encouraged tremendously by my husband, Anand S. Merchant. Had it not been for him, I don’t think I would have come this far."

 

Her struggles to suceed are a great testiment to her persistance and hopefully will inspire others to keep with it.  But despite all her suceess, everyone has something that rattles their cage. Amishi shares with us what keeps her up at night is rain. "Rain scares me. I am yet to figure out how people find rain romantic," she humbly offers. Well, she is now standing in a rainstorm of success and this doesn't scare her at all.