Health Extension Volunteer, Guinea - Peace Corps
Description:
Peace Corps has a rich and diverse history in Guinea. Though the first Volunteers arrived in Guinea in 1963, the Public Health program was launched in 1990. The program was recently renewed to broaden its scope and bolster efforts to improve maternal child health in Guinea. Public Health Educators are now working with youth, caregivers, pregnant mothers or fathers, and anyone related to promoting the care of young children and mothers. Areas include family planning and gender equity, sexual and reproductive health, prevention of transmissible diseases (including malaria), health care for pregnant mothers and newborn children, nutrition, and much more.
Maternal Child and Neonatal Health encompasses a large number of related topics, which allows Volunteers to work where they understand is the most need in their community. Topics include: nutrition, breastfeeding and antenatal care, prevention of transmissible diseases including malaria, sexual and reproductive health and family planning, hygiene (from washing hands to trash projects), home gardening and preparing balanced diets and more.
As a Public Health Educator, you will partner with and work to empower healthcare workers, individuals, and communities in work that leads to the reduction of maternal, neonatal, and child morbidity and mortality. Volunteer work is dependent on behavior change for which Volunteers design projects to reach out to a primary group such as mothers, fathers, youth and other child caregivers due to the linkage between the various sectors of the population. One group directly influences others. Thus the primary goal of the Public Health program is to increase the knowledge and skills of these groups to improve maternal child health in Guinea.
Public Health Educators live in communities that are located near rural health centers and one of your goals is to encourage usage of local healthcare facilities. As a Volunteer, you will form a strong collaborative partnership with a counterpart or counterparts to work with community members to provide information and training on preventative maternal and child health. This can be done through individual home visits, group meetings, working with a youth group, and/or school presentations.
Public Health Educators will also have the opportunity to pursue secondary projects based on the needs and resources available in your community. Cross-sector collaboration with Agroforestry Volunteers is highly encouraged, particularly in the area of Nutrition Sensitive Agriculture. This includes teaching gardening skills and encouraging local preparation and consumption of nutrition-rich vegetables not commonly eaten in the community. Collaboration with Education Volunteers is also encouraged, as school garden projects and youth groups/classes are great venues for outreach on a variety of public health topics (e.g., sexual and reproductive health, malaria).
Peace Corps Guinea promotes gender awareness and girls’ education and empowerment. You will receive training on gender challenges in your country and you will have the opportunity to implement gender-related activities that are contextually appropriate. During your service, you will look for ways to work with community members to promote gender-equitable norms and increase girls’ sense of agency. Part of your work in this area will include reporting on your efforts and their impact.