Drs Anita Dohn and Michael Dohn

Volunteer Health Promoters

The community health promoters are all volunteers. They are selected with the assistance of the local community councils in the neighborhoods.

The commitment to be a health promoter involves attending the training workshops, visiting the assigned houses (usually 14 to 25 homes per health promoter depending upon her situation), and attending monthly meetings of the promoters in their community. The time required is about one afternoon a week, though the health promoters can make their visits at any time that is convenient for them and the homes they are visitng.

Each health promoter group chooses a coordinator. These coordinators meet together monthly to discuss problems, find solutions, advance new ideas, and set new directions.

There are about 225 health promoters working now in a dozen communities (see map). They are influential in the lives of an estimated 20,000 people or more.

Two Premises of Christian Community Health Ministry* ~

1. Our community health ministries

    should actually improve people's

    health.

    It is not enough to go through the

    motions or count numbers of people

    enrolled. This is why we do the basleine

    and follow-up community surveys.

    Determining if the ministry is

    accomplishing the plan is good

    stewardship.

2. The process of improving health is as

    important as the health outcomes.

    In other words, we must have a process

    through which individuals, families, and

    communities can grow in self-esteem,

    autonomy, and self-acutalization. It

    should be a process that helps people

    grow into their full stature in Christ.

* Source: WH Mosley, Principles of Community Health. In: DM Ewert. 1990. A New Agenda for Medical Missions. Burnswick, GA: MAP International.

Health Promotion Topics

 Core topics

  1. Diarrhea and dehydration in children

  2. Acute respiratory illnesses in children

  3. Vaccine preventable diseases

  4. Women's health (breast & cervical

       cancer)

  5. HIV/AIDS, STD's and sexual behavior

We evaluate the program by comparing baseline and follow-up community surveys. The follow-up surveys occur after the program has been running for about 13 months in a community (pictures during a community survey).

 Some of the Advanced Topics

  1. Maternal & child health

  2. Tuberculosis

  3. Dengue Fever / Malaria

  4. Death and mourning - Helping families

      cope

  5. Care of the physically impaired

      patient at home

  6. First responder training

We are adding domestic violence and alcohol misuse to the list of topics.

These focus areas are much different than the other topics listed. In contrast to concentrating on changes in behavior in individual households, domestic violence and alcohol misuse must consider community-wide changes in attitude and expectations. This will require new methods of working in their communities by the health promoters groups.  

Fiesta de Navidad in appreciation for the volunteer work of the Health Promoters

The health promoters are volunteers. However, in appreciation for their volunteer efforts over the year, we do have an annual Fiesta de Navidad (Christmas Party) for all of them.

Other Health Promotion Activities

1. Community talks (charlas) on HIV/AIDS and other sexually-transmitted diseases (STD) at schools, companies, churches, and other venues by members of the community health team.
2. Proyecto Skahan focuses prevention activites on those most at risk for acquiring HIV infection or another STD. These health promoters work on weekend nights going to those places where sex workers, their clients and others looking for casual sex tend to gather. These health promoters present safe sex messages and educate people concerning HIV and STD's.