Preparing and Observing

Hey everyone.  During the past few days we have had the pleasure of exploring the Ganta area by going along with outreach teams as they conduct community visits.  A community visit starts by gathering everyone together and hearing any problems or questions that have come up since the last visit.  Then, the director will do a review of general health topics covered in the past. (Malaria prevention, immunizations, etc.)  Community members take turns answering and clarifying each other's responses.  The outreach team then breaks down into their specialties (HIV, family planning, maternal health, immunizations) to treat patients or do further counseling.  We also had an opportunity to talk to women of reproductive age about their views on health facilities vs. trained traditional midwives.  Needless to say, this observation is important so that we can have a full picture of healthcare for these rural communities.  We also joined the gCHVs again to finish up their Malaria training, and are 90% done getting our materials together for next week.  We are definitely looking forward to starting our Compassionate Labor program next Monday and have enjoyed so much interest and support. More next week!