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Countries/States Served:
AK, WA, OR, ID, MT
People Utilized or Employed:
General Preventive Medicine, Public Health, Infectious Disease, Dietitian, Social Work
Types of Students Allowed:
Medical Students, Premedical Students, Nursing Students, Prenursing Students |
Program Length:
Long Term (Greater than 1 month)
Language Skills:
Religious Affiliations:
University Affiliations:
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Current Volunteer Opportunities (Unpaid Positions)
Public Health Education needed for
More than 1 year
Opportunity Description:
The Work of Public Health Educators:
As a Peace Corps Volunteer, you may serve in a healthcare system either as a regional health educator for a government ministry of health, or as community health or nutrition promoters working out of a rural dispensary or health clinic. Collaborating with your host country counterparts on education, awareness, and other relevant projects, you encourage community members to adopt behaviors that promote health, prevent illness, treat disease, and facilitate rehabilitation. Health projects may include:
Maternal/Child Health:
?X Train and mobilize health workers or community volunteers to set up infant growth monitoring systems and teach women about nutrition or malaria prevention.
?X Conduct workshops on health-related topics.
?X Assist a traveling immunization team to show village mothers the benefits of child immunizations.
Nutrition:
?X Work with rural community leaders and health workers to increase their knowledge of nutrition.
?X Help communities improve their overall health by educating mothers about the benefits of breast feeding, appropriate weaning practices, and eating a balanced diet.
?X Teach women, farmers, or school children to cultivate gardens that will add variety to the food their families consume.
HIV/AIDS Prevention and Education:
Collaborate with local AIDS coordinators to provide education and counseling services, especially targeting women and youth. Activities may involve the use of radio for information dissemination, facilitating support group discussions, developing an AIDS Action Center and conducting outreach programs.
In whatever capacity you serve, you are a catalyst for change. You work with local people, especially women and children. Health education classes may be held in an open air meeting place. Clinics and healthcare centers, if available, vary considerably in terms of equipment, medical supplies and sanitary conditions. Your can-do attitude, patience and sensitivity to your community??s needs are essential to empowering people to make informed choices about their health. Your success hinges on the ability of the community members to assume responsibility for the continued operation of their health systems.
Volunteer Profile:
Education:
Applicants will have a bachelor??s degree in health education, nutrition, dietetics, or another health-related discipline;
-or-
A master??s degree in public health;
-or-
A Registered Nurse certified in public health or midwifery or a certified physician??s assistant.
Experience:
Most applicants have been active in:
?X health-related activities on a volunteer basis in college or their community;
?X working as peer nutritionists, AIDS or STDs counselors, or resident advisors in dormitories; or
?X shadowing doctors in hospitals, as pre-med students.
Other relevant experience includes experience in disease surveillance, creative training and adult education techniques, and community entry and survey methods.
The Rewards of Peace Corps Service
As a Peace Corps Volunteer you can make a tremendous contribution to the lives of others. At the same time, you discover that your experience is as much about your learning as it is about teaching.
Volunteer service develops or accentuates your professional abilities and enhances your personal growth. Virtually all returning Volunteers agree they have received far more than they have given. Recent college graduates gain hands-on experience and often further define their career goals. Others confirm their commitment to their profession and receive career-boosting international experience. Retirees bring their accumulated life experiences to those who need and respect them.
Some of the many benefits that come with Peace Corps service include: student loan deferment and/or partial cancellation, transportation to and from country of service, in-country training, medical and dental care, living allowance, 48 paid vacation days, a $6,000+ ??readjustment?? allowance upon completion, graduate school opportunities, etc.
Life is calling. How far will you go?
800.424.8580
www.peacecorps.gov
Total Number of Volunteers Needed:
15
Find Out More |
Health/Nutrition Extension needed for
Opportunity Description:
The Work of Health Extension Volunteers:
There is a growing awareness that at the base of many health problems lies not only a lack of resources and facilities, but a lack of information. As a Peace Corps Health Education Volunteer, you work with the community to encourage people to adopt behaviors that promote health, prevent illness, treat disease, and facilitate rehabilitation. You may train regional health workers in preventative care or prepare village health workers and community residents to provide for their own health needs. You may advise the community on how to improve their delivery systems, health interventions, and resources. In collaboration with community members, your projects may include:
Maternal/Child Health:
?X Train and mobilize health workers or community volunteers to set up infant growth monitoring systems and teach women about nutrition or malaria prevention.
?X Conduct workshops on health-related topics.
?X Assist a traveling immunization team to show village mothers the benefits of child immunizations.
Nutrition:
?X Promote a nutritious diet that includes vitamins and minerals, particularly Vitamin A, Iron, and Iodine.
?X Help communities improve their overall health by educating mothers about the benefits of breast feeding, appropriate weaning practices, and eating a balanced diet.
?X Teach women, farmers, or school children to cultivate gardens that will add variety to the food their families consume.
HIV/AIDS Prevention Education:
Collaborate with local AIDS coordinators to provide education and counseling services, especially targeting women and youth. Activities may involve the use of radio for information dissemination, facilitating support group discussions, developing an AIDS Action Center and conducting outreach programs. The work often takes place in environments with abnormally high mortality rates, and exposure to death and grief is common.
Water/Sanitation:
Work with communities to manage their water and sanitation resources or increase access to adequate water and sanitation services. Facilitate the adoption of new hygiene practices to help prevent the occurrence of water-borne diseases.
Nurse Training:
Help a country meet its demand for qualified professionals by developing curricula and teaching nurses, auxiliary health workers and other health professionals.
Education:
Bachelor??s in any discipline with a demonstrated interest in health (e.g., AIDS outreach, Planned Parenthood counseling, Red Cross, EMT or CPR certification, hospital or clinic experience, or lab technician experience); OR
Currently Registered Nurse (RN) with a bachelor??s in Nursing and a demonstrated interest in community health, or a 3 year Nursing Diploma and a demonstrated interest in community health; OR
Currently Registered Nurse (RN) with an associate degree in Nursing and a demonstrated interest in community health, or LPN/LVN with two years post-license experience and a demonstrated interest in community health.
Experience:
Most applicants will have demonstrated their interest in health through volunteer or work experience in areas such as AIDS outreach, Planned Parenthood counseling, Red Cross EMT or CPR certification, and hands-on care-giving in a hospice, hospital, clinic, or lab technician setting.
Counseling or teaching can also qualify as experience.
Applicants are encouraged to pursue health outreach-related volunteer opportunities prior to their departure.
The Rewards of Peace Corps Service:
As a Peace Corps Volunteer you can make a tremendous contribution to the lives of others. At the same time, you discover that your experience is as much about your learning as it is about teaching.
Volunteer service develops or accentuates your professional abilities and enhances your personal growth. Virtually all returning Volunteers agree they have received far more than they have given. Recent college graduates gain hands-on experience and often further define their career goals. Others confirm their commitment to their profession and receive career-boosting international experience. Retirees bring their accumulated life experiences to those who need and respect them.
Some of the many benefits that come with Peace Corps service include: student loan deferment and/or partial cancellation, transportation to and from country of service, in-country training, medical and dental care, living allowance, 48 paid vacation days, a 6,000+ ??readjustment?? allowance upon completion, graduate school opportunities, etc.
Life is calling. How far will you go?
800.424.8580
www.peacecorps.gov
Total Number of Volunteers Needed:
Find Out More |
Mission Statement: (See Web Site For Updated Information)
Creating Sustainable Solutions
As a Peace Corps Volunteer you arrive in your assigned country of service, not with funds or equipment, but with skills and knowledge as well the willingness to adapt them to your community. The primary focus of all volunteer work is building the capacity of local communities to meet their own needs through sustainable activities. A successful project is one that continues to function effectively after the volunteer leaves.
Before starting your two-year assignment, you receive approximately three months of in-country training, focusing on language, cross-cultural, and technical skills as well as on health and safety. The training program is designed to help you become an integral member of the community by giving you an understanding of the country?s governmental system, cultural norms, and interpersonal relations. Technical training enhances your ability to effectively transfer your skills and knowledge to host-country people.
Flexibility is your key to success
It is vital that Volunteers understand not only the myriad of technical problems, but also the cultural views and socio-political context in which they operate. The assignment may have little or no established structure or schedule. You continually define your role in response to the needs of the local people. Your willingness to integrate into your community and help your hosts find appropriate solutions can encourage people to participate. Your creativity, flexibility, self-motivation, and self-discipline may be vigorously challenged as you establish credibility and adapt to your new environment.
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