If you have read my “author bio” below this column, you might have seen that if I could get dinner with any historical figure, one of them would be Paul Farmer. I believe Farmer was one of the most influential practitioners in healthcare, and I am eternally saddened that my nine-year-old self wasn’t a student at Notre Dame when he spoke here in 2011. Farmer was a medical anthropologist, professor at Harvard University, Chair of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School and founder of Partners in Health — an international non-profit that provides direct healthcare services and undertakes advocacy on behalf of those who are sick and living in poverty. Basically, he was the closest thing the 21st century had to Sts. Cosmas and Damian.
While on campus, he spoke about the importance of accompaniment, connected global health to theology and deepened his relationship with Fr. Gustavo Gutierrez, a professor of theology at Notre Dame. The culmination of their meeting resulted in a collaborative book, titled “In the Company of the Poor,” which highlights the interconnectedness of liberation theology and healthcare. In it, Farmer references “pragmatic solidarity” in its simplest form as linking feeling with doing, calling all of us to move beyond abstract compassion and demand concrete action in the alleviation of suffering. This phrase, pragmatic solidarity, underscores and galvanizes the relationship between faith and social justice: where theology and action meet.
I believe this phrase extends far beyond the reaches of healthcare, however, and could very well be a contender for your New Year’s resolution, if you let it. I don’t expect that anyone who might read this should drop everything to become Farmer for the entirety of 2026 — I don’t think any of us are capable of recreating his verve. However, I do think we can implement small themes of this message in our day-to-day lives, especially in three main components: community, dignity and accompaniment.
Community-based action within the context of pragmatic solidarity emphasizes building local capacity and empowering groups as equal partners in each others’ wellbeing. At the scale of Notre Dame, this tenet could look like embracing your dorm community, saying “yes” to that club event, or finding a time to get dining hall dinner with your group of friends every week. Another core conviction of Farmer’s dogma is that every person matters — how can you show the people in your life that they matter to you? Finding joy in the daily camaraderie that the college experience brings us helps us live this conviction at its essence. Take it one step further by finding a community outside of Notre Dame, through volunteering and giving back to our broader South Bend community. When we give back to our community, we empower those around us to give of themselves, as well.
Dignity is treating others with inherent respect, or more commonly, treating others the way we would like to be treated. In healthcare, dignity can look like ensuring a patient’s wishes are respected in end-of-life care or prioritizing a patient’s autonomy in treatment plans. In everyday life, dignity simply involves making people feel good about themselves. Encourage your roommate who is stressed about studying for the MCAT to take a step back and recognize just how much they have learned and achieved since coming to Notre Dame. Practice active listening in conversations with friends and affirm that people are being heard. When we intentionally participate in the lives of others, we support their ability to live authentically and bear witness to their humanity.
Accompaniment, in both medical and personal contexts, can be described as walking alongside others in their journey. This echoes dignity, where you choose to share in someone’s life to support them in both happiness and suffering. As Farmer put it in his 2011 Commencement speech at the Harvard Kennedy School, “There’s an element of mystery, of openness, in accompaniment: I’ll go with you and support you on your journey wherever it leads. I’ll keep you company and share your fate for a while.” In offering presence, we take the role of support rather than observation. It extends beyond physical proximity, and dances along the border of emotional and spiritual connection. At its core, accompaniment is choosing to intertwine your life with someone else’s, for better or for worse.
So, in keeping with the theme of New Year’s resolutions, I implore you to examine your life and how you lead it through the context of Farmer’s pragmatic solidarity. In a day and age where it feels easier to limit our interactions to social media and text conversations, to only worry about the next upcoming due date or interview, to be overwhelmed by the constant onslaught of events and assignments and meetings that punctuate the daily life of a college student, choose connection. Choose and lean upon your community, don’t be afraid of empowering those around you and make efforts to share in the joys and frustrations of those you walk alongside.
Ivy Clark is a senior pre-med studying neuroscience and behavior with a minor in global health and the Glynn Program. Despite living in the midwest her entire life, she has visited 11 countries and is excited to share her most recent endeavors working with the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata, India. If Ivy could get dinner with any historical figure, it would be Paul Farmer or Samantha Power, whose memoir inspired her column name. You can reach her at iclark@nd.edu.
