Dr. Paul Farmer Takes Questions on Reddit's "Ask Me Anything"

On March 16, 2016, Dr. Paul Farmer, co-founder and chief strategist for Partners In Health, took questions on Reddit.com's "Ask Me Anything." Reddit.com is an entertainment, social news networking service, and news website. The "Ask Me Anything" event allows registered community members to ask questions on any topic. Dr. Farmer then answered the most popular questions, as determined by votes from the Reddit community. 

During the two-hour event, Dr. Farmer answered 28 questions, of the 247 asked. Questions covered a variety of topics--from advice on starting a career in global health, to a question from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates about how to prepare for the next epidemic, to the J.R.R. Tolkien novel, "Lord of the Rings."

Some highlights:

• As one Redditor observed, "You know it's a big deal when Bill Gates shows up."

• Dr. Farmer's take on staying positive in this line of work:

• A "Lord of the Rings" question to keep things light:

• On how to help without doing harm:

• On how to start a career in global health:

• On how to balance work and family:

• A few reactions from Reddit users:

• We also saw some great Facebook comments and tweets going around before, during, and after the AMA itself:

You can read Dr. Paul Farmer's full Reddit "Ask Me Anything" here.