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Health Projects
From rural Andean communities that rarely see a doctor, clinics in impoverished areas of Oaxaca, public health campaigns in Belize, HIV and AIDS outreach in Thailand, and eldercare in India, ProWorld has opportunities for volunteers in our health projects throughout the year. Below are some of your project options.
Join ProWorld Health projects through Semester Abroad, Intern Abroad, & Group Programs.
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Join ProWorld Health projects through Semester Abroad, Intern Abroad, & Group Programs.
Work with public and private health institutions to improve the health of community members in the Sacred Valley and Cusco. Volunteers may opt to work with local hospitals and/or small local clinics.
Volunteers working with local hospitals will serve the poor residents of communities by providing preventive health care and education, and offering free and low cost health services. Local doctors and nurses will assist volunteers in learning about the practice of medicine in resource-poor settings, as well as provide an invaluable perspective regarding the unique health care needs and concerns of the surrounding communities.
Volunteers working with local hospitals will serve the poor residents of communities by providing preventive health care and education, and offering free and low cost health services. Local doctors and nurses will assist volunteers in learning about the practice of medicine in resource-poor settings, as well as provide an invaluable perspective regarding the unique health care needs and concerns of the surrounding communities.
Public Health Education Project
Help community members of the Sacred Valley and Cusco improve their health and increase their knowledge of how to care for themselves. ProPeru staff and volunteers will work with the Department of Cusco to provide community members with access to qualified health care, preventative health care education, and training.
Public Health Investigation Project
Assist with ongoing research projects that seek to further understand the specific health care needs of communities within the Sacred Valley and Cusco. ProPeru staff and volunteers will work with health care professionals, local organizations, and community leaders in an effort to conduct scientifically sound and relevant research.
Research projects seek to determine the prevalence of specific diseases, to elucidate risk factors for such cases, and to pinpoint possible areas for appropriate and effective intervention. Results from such research will be used to formulate and guide health education initiatives, as well as be prepared for publication in public health journals.
Octavia Waight Research projects seek to determine the prevalence of specific diseases, to elucidate risk factors for such cases, and to pinpoint possible areas for appropriate and effective intervention. Results from such research will be used to formulate and guide health education initiatives, as well as be prepared for publication in public health journals.
Help care for those who cannot care for themselves. At Octavia Waight Center, you have the opportunity to participate in nursing, physiotherapy, geriatric care, and general health care.
You will focus on establishing emotional relationships with patients who would otherwise have few or no visitors. Volunteers also have the opportunity to design and implement various programs to meet other needs of patients.
BFLA (Belize Family Life Association)
In addition to this, Nurse Dolly Witts works with the public health sector of the San Ignacio hospital. She participates in counseling and education along with the other nurses at the hospital.
Public Health Campaigns
Develop and Assist with ongoing research projects that seek to further understand the specific health care needs of communities within the Cayo District of Belize. You will work with ProBelize staff and health care professionals, local organizations, and community leaders in an effort to conduct scientifically sound and relevant research.
Research projects seek to determine the prevalence of specific diseases, to elucidate risk factors for such cases, and to pinpoint possible areas for appropriate and effective intervention. Results from such research will be used to formulate and guide health education initiatives, as well as be prepared for publication in public health journals.
CARE Belize
CARE Belize was founded due to a need to give therapy to children with disabilities under the age of 18. Disabled children do not usually receive the physical therapy and social attention needed to help them rise above their disabilities. These children have a need to be taken out of their homes and be allowed to grow and participate in the community at large.
You will help in taking the children outside for activities, providing physical therapy and exercise, and activities such as singing, drawing, playing, etc. This project will be coupled with another project because CARE does not operate every day.
La Loma Luz Hospital
Gain clinical experience at one of the local hospitals in Santa Elena. La Loma Luz Adventist Hospital is a charitable, non-profit healthcare facility with a mission to provide quality health care to even the poorest of Belize’s citizens. A volunteer’s previous medical experience will dictate their specific responsibilities.
San Ignacio or Belmopan Public Hospitals
Gain clinical experience working at a public hospital in San Ignacio or in the capital city of Belmopan. These government run facilities provide free healthcare to all Belizean citizens. A volunteer’s previous medical experience will dictate their specific responsibilities.
Malaria Prevention & Health Education
Help conduct malaria research in areas once affected by malaria. Collect water samples and study mosquito breeding grounds to better understand the spread of malaria in villages. Interview villagers to see the impact malaria has had. Help dispense prevention information and educate villagers on how to clear their houses of mosquito breeding grounds.
Clinica del Pueblo
Contribute to the Clinica del Pueblo’s efforts to provide health care to the poorest community members of Oaxaca. The clinic provides basic health services and several outpatient surgeries. Volunteers will contribute to the clinic’s efforts in a variety of ways, including taking vitals, treating injuries, shadowing nurses and doctors, sitting in on surgeries and cleaning and preparing instruments. Volunteers may also perform other duties as needed such as document translation and categorization of donated medications.
Secretaria de Salubridad y Asistencia (SSA Clínicas)
Participants will work in the smaller clinics alongside nurses and doctors.
Casa Hogar para Ancianos
The Casa Hogar’s objectives are to offer quality physical, mental and social services to the elderly that have been either abandoned or do not have the resources to support themselves. The home guarantees security to its inhabitants while working to secure for them the highest level of autonomy and auto sufficiency and the opportunity to a healthy environment where they can live with dignity.
They like volunteers who are good with people and willing to interact with the community.
CORAL (Centro Oaxaqueño de Rehabilitación de Audición y Lenguaje)
CORAL offers hearing-impaired children and adults the gift of a brighter future by providing a full range of low-cost hearing rehabilitative services and programs for those Oaxaqueños that generally cannot afford them.
Volunteers will work with the director and teachers at CORAL to facilitate education, help with fundraising, and work with the children.
India
Health Projects at ProIndia are broken down into Clinical and Public Health experiences. ProIndia partners with local NGOs to place interns at area hospitals to learn about the Indian healthcare system and have the opportunity to interact with both patients and healthcare professionals.
Through its partners, ProIndia supports a number of ongoing Public Health initiatives as well including rural health camps, HIV outreach, and the construction of soak and compost pits, bathrooms, clean-burning stoves and kitchen gardens. Interns work in rural communities, learning the ins and outs of the planning, executing, monitoring and evaluating of these projects.
IHDUA
IHDUA is an organization which provides much needed health care in Mysore. Their services included a cancer hospital, rural health clinics, rural schools, construction of toilets, installation of kitchen gardens to combat anemia, construction of compost pits, installation of smokeless stoves, food production, and more. In addition, they have initiated a number of women's empowerment groups and vocational programs.
Interns are placed based on their skills and experiences along with their interest, and will find a balance between field and office work.
Thailand
Health Projects supported by ProThailand allow for interns to engage with NGOs to combat various health issues Northern Thailand faces. Various organizations tackle numerous health related problems, such as proper care & treatment for HIV/AIDS, distribution of resources and medications, and working to develop social programs for communities indirectly affected by disease and health.
Participants can join a local or national partner organization and contribute to their missions by supporting field work, spearheading fundraising projects to support programs, or providing administrative support to ensure smooth operations, all of which contribute to the daily progress of changing lives.
The skills, interests, and experiences of all interns will be matched with the needs of a partner organization.
Some organizations ProThailand partners with on various projects are:
The Foundation to Encourage the Potential of Disabled PersonsThis is a foundation that works to provide mobility devices & physical therapy, free of charge, to disabled communities in 6 Provinces of northern Thailand. The majority of staff at this Foundation have been empowered to manage their own life affairs and become self-sufficient.
Foundation for Older Persons Development (FOPDEV) FOPDEV works to provide resources and assistance to the sectors of Thai communities that have been affected by HIV/AIDS, but not infected themselves. They are the Grandparents, Aunts/Uncles, Mother/Father that are left to manage the role of deceased loved on from HIV/AIDS.
Ghana
Malaria, tuberculosis, HIV?AIDS, malnutrition, diarrhea in young children, and poor sanitation are some of Ghana's leading health issues. Recent government efforts have focused on Community Based Health Planning and Services, a new strategy to bring health closer to communities and those most in need. Small community clinics and door to door outreach efforts now supplement the work of larger clinics and hospitals.
ProGhana health interns work in clinics and hospitals, take part in community outreach programs and collaborate with Ghana Health Services and local NGOs to promote health education and awareness, providing individuals and communities with the tools to prevent illnesses, access needed healthcare, and lead healthy lives.
Brazil
In terms of health status indicators, Brazil has a typical profile of a middle income country, meaning that it suffers from the high infant mortality rate and low life expectancy. Only 82% of the people in Bahia have access to sustainable sanitation and clean water. In addition, people also suffer from the diseases of higher income countries such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease.
Since 1998, the country's constitution has guaranteed all Brazilian citizens the right to health care with a national health care system. Primary care is being improved significantly through Brazil's arrangement to have services administered by local municipalities. However, implementation varies and some clinics in Bahia have large service areas and are left without resources to provide even basic preventative and primary care.
The guarantee of primary care also does not include access to dental services, and in the poor areas of the state, people of all ages are missing multiple teeth and suffer from chronic oral health issues.
Brazil was the first country in the world to successfully break international patents on HIV/AIDS medication in order to provide comprehensive treatment to those living with HIV/AIDS. There is a strong HIV/AIDS movement within Salvador which helped Brazil win this political war.
ProBrazil has partnered with other NGOs to provide intern opportunities in health including clinical oral and public health in urban and rural clinics, as well as with community organizations who serve areas where the clinics are uninvolved in the health promotion of the community. ProBrazil also has partnered with organizations implementing green, self-sustainaing sanitation solutions on the island of Itaparica.
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"I really think that all prospective doctors should have an experience like this so they can appreciate all the good things about the American health care system and to have a cross cultural comparison." - Katie
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