Netri Kalra looks out her office window over the raw beauty of Great Slave Lake in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories – approximately 400 kilometres from the Arctic Circle.
Netri Kalra in her office in Great Slave Lake. (Submitted)
It’s a unique view that others might not appreciate, but following her own path has been a theme for the graduate of Schulich Medicine & Dentistry’s master of public health (MPH) program.
“Coming from a south Asian community, people said, ‘Oh, you’re going to go to medical school’,” said Kalra, who indeed did a round of medical school applications. “I found that many of my answers in the applications were very community health based. My thinking was very much on a broader systemic level, which public health is all about. So, I felt I was a good candidate for the MPH program.”
Schulich Medicine & Dentistry’s MPH program looked somewhat intimidating to Kalra.
“But that was just me underestimating my own abilities,” said Kalra, who came to Schulich Medicine & Dentistry after completing undergraduate degrees in psychology and social development studies from the University of Waterloo and working in various health-related fields.
Kalra was quick to appreciate the case-based approach and the value of learning from real-life cases which are the trademarks of the Schulich Medicine & Dentistry MPH program.
“I really enjoyed working in teams and the value of this learning approach,” she said. “I felt the program really played to my strengths because it was so discussion based. Through it, I developed interpersonal skills, how to communicate ideas, how to listen to and work with other people and how to complete work in a team-based environment.”
Passion for environmental health
Now, as she graduates from the program, Kalra continues her journey in one of Canada’s most northern urban centres – Yellowknife – a place that became familiar to her through the program’s practicum.
Drawn to the field of environmental health, Kalra studied the effects on drinking water quality of the 2023 wildfires that devastated the area. Called the worst wildfire season on record, more than 230 fires burned through the territory and forced the evacuation of many communities, including Yellowknife.
“In the first few months of the program, I felt drawn to the field of environmental health and its correlation with climate change and how that overlaps with public health,” she said. “It was an intentional decision to be somewhere different and take on a new perspective. This project was available and when I saw the description, I said, ‘That’s the one I want.’ It was perfect.”
Kalra looked at topography and hydrology to understand how the shape of the land and the flow of water would transport combustion products from the fires into surface water sources that feed water treatment plants. While there were no immediate or long-term public health problems, Kalra identified the areas that were most vulnerable to future fires.
Kalra has been able to experience the beauty of the Northern Lights. (Submitted)
The practicum experience was a key part of her decision to return to Yellowknife and a full-time role.
Now, as a population health analyst for the Government of Northwest Territories, Kalra brings her talents to two departments, supporting both the Environmental Health Unit and the Epidemiology Unit.
Several projects are underway, including standardizing a rabies reporting program for the Environmental Health Unit.
“One thing I like about the role is that you’re not siloed into one role or task. You do a lot of different things.”
These combined opportunities also provide Kalra with the opportunity to learn new skills like coding and develop her leadership capabilities – a talent which has already been recognized by her classmates, who nominated her for the Class of 2014 Award recognizing her skills and leadership ability.
“I do operate a little behind the scenes, I prefer to be more in the background. But it felt really good to have people recognize that and appreciate it in that way.”
While she’s only been in Yellowknife a few weeks, she’s already in love with the dramatic scenery, including the famed Northern Lights.
When she tells people where she’s working, they often reply, “Oh no, you’re in the middle of nowhere!” And yes, there are logistical challenges with collecting data territory wide and even getting to Yellowknife itself, admitted Kalra.
“But because so many Canadians live in southern Ontario, they forget there’s a lot of life happening in the northern parts of Canada.”
For Kalra, it’s happening right outside her window.
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Netri Kalra receives her master’s of public health during Western’s fall convocation ceremonies, Oct. 23 to 25. She joins more than 370,000 Western alumni in 160 countries around the world.
