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Peace Corps Case Examples

Health Programming
Case Example:
Combatting
Malnutrition
 
 

The life-changing experience of serving in the Peace Corps and living in an impoverished community in Peru for the purpose of working with local leaders to develop behavior change communication programs was both challenging and extremely rewarding.  By partnering with community based organizations, creating impactful messages that addressed determinants of behavior, distributing messages through socially acceptable channels, and building the capacity of leaders, we were successful in surpassing program goals.  It was an unforgettable journey during which I learned an immense amount about the components of an effective behavior change program targeting disadvantaged populations and using communications tools to promote positive outcomes.

 

In Peru I harnessed the commitment of local leaders to improve the health and well-being of the residents, with the primary focus on small children and adolescents.  I provided technical assistance, connections to existing resources, and I collaborated with diverse groups to build two goal-oriented projects that featured sustainability, inclusiveness, and cultural sensitivity.  The projects were developed to empower participants with information and actionable steps to improve their lives and the lives of their children.  I structured the projects in such a way that community leaders owned the decision-making process.  I enabled them to provide resources and serve as teachers, role models and support systems for participants, who were poorer and marginalized members of the community struggling with even small changes in their daily lives.

 

I created a coalition of representatives from the local health center, the municipal government and social service groups serving the needs of impoverished families to manage the Healthy Homes project.  Thirty-five mothers with children under three years of age were invited to participate in the project, which required them to attend four educational sessions on the topics of improving nutrition, preventing diarrheal illness, early childhood development and the identification and treatment of respiratory infections.  Each educational session was led by a respected community leader with whom I partnered to convey critical information and engage attendees in participatory learning.  I coached leaders to use non-formal education techniques  to aid attendee recall, especially among non-literate mothers.  I developed culturally-appropriate monitoring tools and trained health promoters to conduct house visits to track progress, provide personalized instruction and inspire mothers to adopt healthy habits. 

 

Reaching the project participants through locally-accepted tactics, altered for improved recall and uptake, likely contributed to the overall success of the Healthy Homes project. The results showed that eighty-three percent of participating moms completed the program and overall showed improvement on 18 of 22 behavior indicators. 

 

The second project focused on youth development and reached 85 adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 years of age with reproductive health information and skill-building opportunities to aid in the prevention of pregnancy and transmission of sexually-transmitted infections.  I collaborated with the local health center, municipal government, regional government and school administrators to design and execute a project to address the needs of the community and engage adolescents in learning activities intended to develop life skills that lead to a reduction in risky behaviors.  Through this project, we trained eight youth to become health promoters, and four youth health promoters were partnered with health center staff to present a series of educational sessions on reproductive health and an HIV workshop to high school students.  

 

The result of the youth development project was reflected in a 30% increase in students reporting the adoption of at least one new method to prevent pregnancy and transmission of sexually-transmitted infections including HIV.  In addition, the PEPFAR-funded project provided training to health workers on facts about HIV and dispelled myths about HIV testing and transmission.

 

Both projects were designed to build the capacity of local community members and become sustainable programs over time that capitalize on existing local resources.

 

Please click on the links above to read more about the Healthy Homes project and the Youth Development project.

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