Grassroots Health Outreach in the Global Village

1
Grassroots Health Outreachin the Global Village

• Anne B. Keith, RN, DrPH, C-PNP
• University of Southern Maine
• College of Nursing Health Professions

2
A personal journey

• From migrant and nurse
• ... to fellow
  travelers

3
A mind stretched by a new experience does not
return to its old dimensions

• Oliver Wendell Holmes

4
be careful what you wish for

• Origins in 1994
• Twice yearly trips since
• Nursing, prevention and primary care
• 15,000 patients
• Original villages have had 12 team visits
• Grateful donors and volunteers
• New bonds that tie

5
health in the rural villages...

• hard work and clean living
• lack of property and cash
• lack of varied diet
• no relief from pain
• nor from infection...

6
Goals USM Partnership Health Outreach

• promote learning
• use service learning model
• communicate over cultural fences
• and partnership
• respond to villager requests
• choose feasible objectives

7
more goals

• offer caring
• personal hands on attention
• bring safe and effective medicine
• and plenty of vitamins, tailored by age.
• and solidarity
• include villagers in every step
• go where they ask

8

• Some evening,
• take a step out of your house,
• which you know so well.
• Enormous space is near..

From Rilke
9
Sponsors

• Local faith based organization
• University of Southern Maine
• Locally licensed volunteer physicians
• Local voluntary organization
• Village committees

10
In 12 months we do...

• 14 rural villages
• village health day every 6 months
• 3,500 individual visits/year
• health supplies and meds on every visit
• health chats, home visits, childrens events

11
most popular lesson...
12
Voluntary sharing

• If you lack property or status, you lack
  medicine.
• Healers learn the safe use of medicines.
• Communities create the spirit of healing.
• People can share their surplus between global
  villages.
• These are ancient propositions of healing.

13
No Hay Medicina

• There is no medicine!
• a billion cries from the heart
• Bolivian health posts
• Dominican public hospital
• Maine seniors on Medicare
• Cubans behind the blockade

14
Resources

• Volunteers give several weeks service
• 100 US per year in 2 sessions
• 50 Dominican every session
• 21,000 donated for medicine and supplies
• 171 donors
• US volunteers fund own expenses
• family budgets, church and club
• USM Student Senate and scholarship support

15
Partners

• USM
• faculty students
• nursing, language, social work
• international courses
• Volunteers
• professionals
• Spanish speakers
• Donors
• funds for medicine
• in-kind

• Village Committees
• Parish priests
• local NGO link
• licensed MDs
• Local vehicle owners
• P. Corps translators
• Heath Ministry

16
We are North-American university nursing
students. We want both to learn and to teach
17
their sense of dignity and patience
from struggling without resources, the gift they
shared with me, allowing me into a small part of
their lives...
18
We wish to serve our fellow human beings as an
expression of our common spirituality.
19
reflecting upon our life and health. In the
midst of our poverty, we share our love and
faith...
20
to explain what it was to discover the nature of
the problems and the hopeful quest for the
resolution
21

• We learn
• best in this
• way,
• because
• our world
• is
• very harsh.

22
Since we do not have employment or money, perhaps
we can learn to help other poor people and
ourselves and in some way alleviate at least some
of our suffering...
23
rain or shine , we come to you.
24
...arriving at Kilometer 30
25
..we waited for you...
26
my child is too thin...
27
glad it is not raining today
28
Yes , theres medicine for you.
29
quality control...
30
Always examine the feet
31
I can read, but I cant see...
32
still on the road...
33
(No Transcript)
34
am I next ?

• When are you coming back??

35
a new toothbrush...
36
get it out of there...
37
... a clinic of our own...
38
Supporting growth of community health leaders
in using self-directed methods of health
care and promotion
39
living your life.
40
...a dedicated man...

• ..trained abroad
• as a doctor,
• in order
• to serve the poor...

41
...lunchbreak .

• No,
• I wasnt on vacation

42
a light in the dark..
43
keeping the grass green...

• Plan to give freely to those in need
• Go where you are invited
• Listen and trust
• Keep your promises
• Question the conditions of justice mercy
• Sustain hope
  ... that good shall
  win out over evil

44
credits

• To the people who did this themselves,
  all thanks are due.
• You will find them down in the grassroots.