GlobalGiving.co.uk: Provide Public Health for Orphans in Uganda

Final Report

Kalindi Shah — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 02:25:05 GMT

New Directions for GlobeMed at Northwestern in 2012-2013:

In five short years, GlobeMed has rapidly expanded, with chapters spanning from coast to coast and partners extending across the globe. Committed to principles of sustainability and community-based change, GlobeMed emphasizes that each chapter partners with an established NGO. Most GlobeMed chapters have emerged under this sophisticated model, which ensures effective impact through equitable partnership. While GlobeMed at Northwestern has witnessed the development of this approach, the growth of our own partnership has been unique.

GlobeMed at Northwestern was a definitive response to the perceived health inequities, social injustices, and service delivery inefficiencies in the Ho catchment area of Ghana. Partnering with a community worker, Joseph Achana, GlobeMed at Northwestern committed itself to providing essential health care and community services. In partnership, the community, Joseph, and GlobeMed at Northwestern came together to build and develop the Health Outreach and Peer Education (H.O.P.E) Center. Now, this center is the site of a community clinic, administered by Ghana Health Services. Additionally, the Child Nutrition Program and Sexual Health Education Program developed and implemented by Northwestern students, nurses, and Joseph have been realized through the HOPE Center. Though the Child Nutrition Program no longer runs at full capacity, we are proud to report that Ghana Health Services has replicated our Sexual Health Education Program model and is extending outreach in Ho. We celebrate the success of the HOPE Center in delivering services to members of the Ho catchment as a community clinic.

Every year, as the chapter’s understanding of global health and community engagement matures, one question invariably emerges: when should partnership end? This question holds particular significance for our chapter, as a result of its unconventional founding. We developed our partnership with an individual, who represented a community, to realize a singular goal: providing essential health care services to the Ho community. With the transferal of resources and responsibility from GlobeMed at Northwestern to Ghana Health Services, we believe that our chapter has reached the arc of our partnership with the HOPE Center. We would like to commemorate the success of the HOPE Center to the founders, nurses, and administrators of the HOPE Center as well as to the Ho community.

In the upcoming 2012-2013 academic year, we look forward to the exciting new direction of GlobeMed at Northwestern. We are thrilled to announce Adonai Family Uganda (AFU) as our new partner. In response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, Adonai Family Uganda was founded as a safe haven for orphaned children. Since its founding in 2005, AFU has extended health outreach, developed family economic empowerment programs, developed a primary school, and sponsored orphaned children. As our partnership with the HOPE Center slowly comes to an end, we hope to see your continued support in the coming years as we nurture our partnership with Adonai Family Uganda.

Please visit our brand spanking new website (www.globemednu.org) and project page on Global Giving.

Links:

Search for us on Google

Fall 2012 GlobeMed Update

Teresa Caya and Ragini Bhushan — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 01:30:13 GMT

GlobeMed at Northwestern just completed our fall recruitment, and we are very excited to continue promoting our mission on campus with 23 new and 33 returning members this year! Our biggest change this year is that we are transitioning from our partnership with the H.O.P.E. Center to the Adonai Child Development Center in Namugoga, Uganda. We are sad to wrap up our partnership with the H.O.P.E Center after working with them for seven incredible years but are proud to say that they have become a self-sustainable NGO. It has been rewarding to see both their and our hard work come to fruition, and we are confident that they will be to be able to support their community on their own through the continuation of the Nutrition Project.

During our first two meetings this year, we discussed the importance of building and maintaining sustainable partnerships with health clinics abroad in order to make tangible changes in the lives of others. As a group of students with diverse interests and backgrounds, GlobeMed is able to brainstorm ways of bringing attention to global health issues locally and thinking about solutions for the future of global health by utilizing journalism majors, film majors, pre-medical students, and a variety of other students. We look forward to combine our skills to design projects for our new partnership with the Adonai Child Development Center. Their focus on caring for and improving the health of children orphaned due to AIDS and civil unrest is a cause that we are passionate about and look forward to learning more about.

Keep an eye out for details about our new project page on Global Giving--we hope that you will continue to support us as we embark on a new partnership!

GlobeMed at Northwestern Report July 2012

Ragini Bhushan and Teresa Caya — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 18:52:11 GMT

GlobeMed at Northwestern 5K Fun Run!

As the year came to a close for GlobeMed at Northwestern, we looked back on a very successful year of fundraising, group activities, and thought-provoking debates. We are happy to report that we raised over $19,000, almost doubling the amount we raised last year and substantially increasing our ability to help the Malnutrition Program at the H.O.P.E Center. From our final chapter meeting to our end of the year barbecue, we reminisced over the success of the 5K/Fun Run fundraiser and World Day of Social Justice activities and we are now looking ahead to the GROW trip with the H.O.P.E Center this summer. It will be rewarding to see how our funds help the community firsthand, and we hope to create a documentary to share these moments with all of you who helped make this programs possible. Thanks for your support throughout the year, and we hope that you will continue to help the members of the Ho community over this summer and next school year!

GlobeMed Members Setting Up for the Fun Run!

World Day of Social Justice 2012

Spreading Awareness on Campus!

Links:

Check out our new website!

April Updates

Ragini Bhushan — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 04:56:41 GMT

GlobeMed at Northwestern has participated in many events this quarter and has some exciting events to look forward to. With our 5K/Fun Run coming up this weekend, we hope to raise more funds for our Malnutrition Program. Many members also attended the GlobeMed Summit in Evanston this month, which was filled with inspirational speeches and the brainstorming of many new ideas that our chapter plans to implement. Please help us have a strong finish to our most successful year! With help from you, we hope to the chance to raise $20,000 dollars for the year – beating our goal by $5,000! We really appreciate all your help and support this year, and the H.O.P.E Center would not be the same without all of you.

Help Save the Malnourished Children of Ghana

Ragini Bhushan — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 05:17:26 GMT

1 in 2 children past infancy in Ghana will die due to malnutrition. Malnutrition among children in Ghana is a problem that has yet to be solved, but GlobeMed at Northwestern is working alongside the H.O.P.E Center to help resolve it with our Nutrition Program. We have raised $15,000 for the Malnutrition Program this school year, but with the New Year in mind, we have set high resolutions as we want to continue to help the countless children in need. Please help us start 2012 strong by helping us support the Malnutrition Program. Thank you so much for your continued support and for all your help with the Winter Individual Giving Campaign, which was our most successful campaign ever!

Support Lifestyle Changes for Ghanaian Families

Ragini Bhushan — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 02:07:22 GMT

Cooking meals infused with protein supplements

As the Chinese proverb says: “Give a man a fish, and you’ve fed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish, and you’ve fed him for a lifetime.” GlobeMed at Northwestern focuses on helping the people of Ghana through empowerment rather than simply giving them food. By starting with teaching moms about nutrition, they can influence their children to eat healthy food and supply it with the resources that our program helps provide. Currently, we are working on an Individual Giving Campaign, which involves splitting our chapter into teams and each raising $300 for the H.O.P.E center. With our total goal of $3,000, we can fund the entire nutrition program. With the holiday spirit in mind, please help us achieve this goal and impact not only this generation on Ghanians but also future ones with our aim of teaching and empowerment. Thanks for keeping up with our chapter and for your support this holiday season. Happy Holidays from GlobeMed!

Healthy Relationships for the People of Ho

Ragini Bhushan — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 15:45:45 GMT

GlobeMed at Northwestern is in Phase III of the Sexual Health Program in Ho, through which students groups help their peers at High Schools and Tertiary Institutions understand why people contract STDs, the importance of personal hygiene, and about having healthy sexual relationships. Through working with one’s peers this program will help the young adults connect with each other and really learn what is being taught. Any donation can help us educate and send our peer educators to various schools to speak. Also, December 1^st marks the start of our Individual Giving FUNdrazor Campaign, where we hope to raise $3000 this month to support the entire nutrition program for the H.O.P.E center. In the holiday spirit, please consider Northwestern’s GlobeMed when donating as this year comes to a close! Thank you so much for all your help and support. As always, it is greatly appreciated.

Save Lives: Help Nourish the Children of Ho

Ragini Bhushan — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 02:51:29 GMT

Nurse Love putting the nutrition program to action

GlobeMed at Northwestern hopes to nourish the children of Ho, Ghana through empowerment. By helping give people the resources and information they need, Ghanians will improve their lives and learn how to do so on their own in the future. Through teaching mom’s about nutrition and giving them resources, like soy beans, the children of Ghana can have access to nutritious food that they desperately need. With a donation of just $10 you provide enough food to support a family for one month! Thank you for keeping up with GlobeMed and for all of your support.

October Updates and Funding Push!

Ragini Bhushan — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 03:32:56 GMT

We are really excited for the new direction of our nutrition program this year with vegetable and protein supplements to enhance diets of malnourished children and know that it will make a huge impact on the villages of Ho. This is especially true given that over 50% of deaths past early infancy can be contributed to malnutrition, specifically Protein Energy Malnutrition.¹ Our project started out with introducing soya beans and their benefits and then giving mothers access to and teaching them about soya beans. Our next goal is to help children vary their diet so that it includes vegetables and fruits in addition to protein supplements.

Our nutrition program, which has been running for almost four years has had a lot of success, but funding is crucial to help keep it running. With the last match day of the year coming up on October 19th, every donation and dollar really counts! Please help us continue to help the children of Ghana; as our members who visited this summer saw, they are truly amazing children who deserve to lead healthy lives and have access to countless opportunities that only we can make possible! Thank you again for your continued support of the H.O.P.E Center and GlobeMed.

1) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2245943/

GlobeMed at Northwestern Fall 2011 Update

Ragini Bhushan — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 21:12:08 GMT

The school year at Northwestern has officially begun, and we were very excited to welcome both our new and returning members this year. After some tough decision making with the application process, we picked a diverse group of students, who we feel will really contribute to GlobeMed and have a strong interest in global health.

In our first meeting, we had a guest speaker from the Peace Corps, which was a great way to start of the year, as forming relationships with other agencies interested in global health gives our members a chance to work with them and understand their goals. After an icebreaker to help our members get to know each other, our GlobalHealthU went over GlobeMed’s evolution, and finally members met with their committees for the first time. We’re all looking forward to a pizza party today to get to know each other better.

Our major fundraiser for the quarter is GlobeMed’s Rummage Sale, which has been a huge success in past years and is scheduled for November 17th. We’ve started planning it and hope for an even more successful one this year. We also look forward to working with Deepa, Parul, Neha, and Kerianne who visited the H.O.P.E. center this past summer to see what we can do to help the center and can’t wait to hear more about their amazing experience there.

After raising over $10,000 last year, we hope to raise even more this year, so anything that you can donate would be greatly appreciated, and donations can be made directly on this site. Also, on October 19^th, GlobalGiving.org is matching 30% of all online donations (starting at 12:01 am EDT) with $100,000 available funds. This is the last Bonus Day of the year, so any donation that you would really help us and make a huge difference with the added funds from Global Giving. Thank you again for your continued support, and we’re looking forward to the new school year ahead.

GlobeMed at Northwestern Summer Update

Ragini Bhushan — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 16:05:25 GMT

The school year came to a close and summer has officially begun, and both have had many exciting events for GlobeMed at Northwestern. The year closed out with a fun and informative retreat in Chicago, which included a photo safari and picnic and bonding activities in Millennium park, as well as a fundraising party and barbeque.

Another important event for our chapter was the GlobeMed Ultimate Frisbee Tournament on May 21st. As our first year hosting this event, we were very excited to raise 500 dollars for the H.O.P.E center! The tournament was a huge success as we had many teams participate and enjoy a day full of Ultimate Frisbee and some friendly competition and exercise.

Although we were all sad to see such an incredible year come to an end and to say bye to our amazing presidents, Allyson Westling and Katie Smiley, and senior members, we are all excited about summer and planning for our next year with our new presidents, Deepa Ramadurai and Heather Polonsky, and exec board.

Summer has started with Deepa, Parul, Neha, and Kerianne all visiting the H.O.P.E center. They have all become well acquainted with the members of the center, including the newest member, Head Nurse Perfect Titiati, who according to them is full of humor and wisdom. Her core value is hard work, one that our chapter strives to embody as well.

At the H.O.P.E center, our members have done everything from helping celebrate Ghana’s Republic Day, which falls just days before the 4^th of July to the weighing children at the center and comparing the results with other children of the same age. Supplements and vaccinations are given to the children and their weight is screened for the next five years. Overall, the center is a great for helping children fight malnutrition as well as diagnosing common diseases in the area, like Malaria.

Our chapter has raised over $10,000 this year, but we are hoping to continue to raise more throughout the summer, so anything that you can donate would be greatly appreciated, and donations can be made directly on this site. A donation of even $10 can help with diagnosing diseases through necessary microscope slides while $120 can pay for 6 months of the community farmer’s allowance. We would love to get our donors involved in our many projects as we look ahead to a new and exciting school year. Thanks for your continued support and for taking the time to keep up with our chapter.

GlobeMed at Northwestern Spring Update

Deepa Ramadurai — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 23:27:24 GMT

Showing some GlobeMed love at the 2011 Summit

We have some exciting updates on successful initiatives on campus as well as some some exciting developments in the works for GlobeMed at Northwestern!

The highlight for our chapter this past winter was the World Day of Social Justice, which took place on February 20th. Members of GlobeMed cultivated campus-wide awareness of global health inequities by displaying and handing out balloons all over Northwestern with facts about the health care injustices around the world. We were able to use this day and event to connect with other organizations involved with social justice on campus. Plus, it was a great way to get the chapter involved and engaging with their peers about important social justice issues.

We've taken on another exciting endeavor with our local partnership at Healthy Albany Park, a community-based coalition that plans projects in the Albany Park area geared towards developing a positive youth program and community safety. We are planning on sustaining this volunteer site for the rest of the school year and beyond. Volunteers have enjoyed tutoring the school children, making arts and crafts with them, and participating in all kinds of positive and engaging after school activities.

We've recently come off of an incredibly successful 5th annual GlobeMed Global Health Summit, which took place the weekend of April 7th -10th here in Evanston. With keynote speakers including Andre Banks of Purpose, a movement-building coalition, and Dr. Joia Mukherjee, Chief Medical Officer of Partners in Health, combined with supplementary informational sessions and group discussions, the Global Health Summit was an exciting event for GlobeMed at Northwestern. Over the course of the weekend, we were we able to connect with other chapters and share best practices, form lasting friendships, and advance ways we can strengthen the movement for global health equity. GlobeMed as an organization has grown exponentially over the past few years and will continue to do so with such strong support from our loyal donors, including our friends and family (especially those who follow us on GlobalGiving!).

Our 4-student GROW Team is gearing up for an exciting summer interning at the H.O.P.E. Center. The team will stay in Ho, Ghana, at the site of our partner to administer Community Needs Assessments as well as observe and contribute to the daily rigors at the clinic. The team's main focuses will be to assess the need and demographic for sexual health education as well as maternal health education. These projects will help facilitate the partnership between the H.O.P.E Center and GlobeMed as well as strengthen existing outreach programs.

We want to thank you all for following GlobeMed at Northwestern and continuing your support for our organization. We wouldn't have the impact in Ghana or on campus without our loyal donors and positive feedback!

Some NU delegates at the 2011 Summit

Co-president Katie Smiley's senior speech

World Day of Social Justice balloon campaign

WDSJ balloon campaign

What is a human right?

Kicking off 2011 with GlobeMed at Northwestern

Shruti Zaveri — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 14:59:22 GMT

The new chapter t-shirts have arrived!

Happy New Year! GlobeMed at Northwestern has lots of new and exciting opportunities planned for 2011!

Our fall fundraising campaign, the Global Marketplace, was a huge success. During this event, we collected clothing, books, accessories, DVDs, etc. on and off campus in Evanston to bring together on October 19th to sell in our very own marketplace. The venture was highly successful, and we were thrilled by the outcome. A lot of students from around the campus donated for the cause, and we definitely appreciated each effort. Almost all of the 66 members of our GlobeMed chapter contributed in some form for the event, ranging from publicity to sorting items and volunteering on the day of the marketplace. All of the hard work paid off, and the chapter raised over $1,300 for the reproductive health project at the H.O.P.E center in Ghana!

In order to put each of our talents to the best use, the members of our chapter have now been divided into specific committees. The community building team has organized two local partnerships, Healthy Albany Park and Evanston Community Assessment, where members volunteer on a regular basis. The GlobalHealthU group presents a different global health topic during the beginning of each meeting, allowing the chapter to discuss various health issues around the world. We have also gotten the chance to hear from many of our members that have just returned from global health programs aboard! Listening to their experiences motivates all of the newer members to pursue similar goals.

We are still striving to achieve our goal of raising $10,000 for the H.O.P.E. Center this year. We thank the donors for all of their efforts and truly appreciate each contribution! We have made great progress towards the child nutrition and the sexual and reproductive health programs for the H.O.P.E Center in Ho, Ghana, and are looking forward to continuing the tremendous growth!

Thanks so much for taking the time to read up on our progress and for your continued involvement with GlobeMed at Northwestern!

Looking good in blue!

GlobeMed cupcakes taste great!

Second Annual "Global Marketplace" Fundraiser

All about GlobeMed

Links:

"GlobeMed Grapevine" chapter blog

Chapter updates, matching campaign and more!

Deepa Ramadurai — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 04:17:14 GMT

Learning to make the GlobeMed symbol with our hand

A new school year is officially underway and a new GlobeMed team has been established at Northwestern! After a pretty intense application process (we had over 150 applicants!), our Northwestern chapter has grown to 66 members strong! The members were informed about a week ago and we had an official "meet and greet" to get to know everyone last Sunday where the treat du jour was cupcakes glazed with the GlobeMed symbol!

Our first official chapter meeting was held this past Wednesday evening (October 6th) where we outlined the objectives of GlobeMed as an organization and introduced our new members to our partner organization, the H.O.P.E. Center in Ho, Ghana. We also highlighted our current campaign: the Global Marketplace! This is an initiative we created collecting clothing, books, accessories, DVDs etc. on and off campus in Evanston to bring together on October 19th to sell off in our very own marketplace. The event lasts from 11am-4pm in the Norris Student Center.

Other important information on the agenda was setting goals for this upcoming year and explaining our progress in Ghana from the past summer. Things have been going very well at the H.O.P.E. center and the G.R.O.W. trip members from this past summer did an outstanding job with their own personal research projects and with exceeding the expectations for the work we had in mind. We are currently starting up the childhood nutrition outreach program for a new batch of kids! In addition also over the summer, we decided to set a chapter goal of $10,000 to fundraise over the next year!

Thanks so much for taking the time to read up on our progress!

Some members of the 2010-2011 executive board

Links:

Read our chapter blog!

Expanding the Childhood Nutrition Program

Allyson Westling — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 00:19:02 GMT

Allyson shares some photos with her new friend

After an amazing summer working at our partner site, the Health Outreach and Peer Education (H.O.P.E.) Center, in Ho, Ghana, I am pleased to announce that exciting new initiatives are looming on the horizon.

With the support and guidance of the Center’s staff and community members, the four of us GlobeMed students were able to help develop new avenues to take the Childhood Nutrition Program. During our time in Ghana, the number of community demonstration farms was expanded to a total of four (one at the Center, two in the nearby village Ando, and another one in the village Kodzobi). The addition of these farms will help to reach a broader community, as more people are taught how to properly plant and harvest soybeans to fortify their children’s meals.

To promote sustainability, the peer education training materials of the program were updated and six more people will be trained in the coming year. Currently, three women have been educated as nutrition program ambassadors. They are responsible for helping run the cooking demonstrations and counsel community members in proper nutritional practices. These peer educators will act as liaisons between their community and the H.O.P.E. Center by promoting the nutrition program and identifying any concerns that come to light.

In addition, each student conducted community mapping surveys to better identify areas of health (infectious diseases, nutrition, sanitation, and sexual health) that can be improved among the Center’s catchment areas. Our results indicate that there are specific knowledge gaps, especially in relation to proper nutrition, that exist within certain subgroups of the communities. For instance, there is the potential to expand the nutrition program to include pregnant women. This population group could greatly benefit from the lessons taught during the nutrition program, since healthier eating during pregnancy can lead to a healthier mother and child. Already, work is underway to expand the nutrition program to include pregnant women.

Our time working at the Center this summer convinced us of the significance of the Nutrition Program; we have seen first-hand its positive effect on the community. One mother in Ando explained to me how she has gained a much deeper understanding of proper nutrition and consciously works to promote healthy eating practices among her friends and family. It is our sincere desire that more people will have the opportunity to experience the positive effects of the Nutrition Program and act as advocates within their own communities. It is easy to see that this dream is rapidly becoming a reality and we can’t wait to see what the upcoming year will bring!

GlobeMed students with their "baby backpacks"

Kente cloth fashion show with nurse Margaret

A busy day at the H.O.P.E. Center

Some of the Center's younger patients

Playing games in Ando

Visiting the demonstration farm in Ando village

Links:

"GlobeMed Grapevine" chapter blog

GlobeMED: HOPE Center

Andrew Meaux — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 16:40:22 GMT

As most people know in development, the field is often more riddled with questions than answers. Common among these questions is how to measure an organization’s impact. Does one use fancy metrics to chart how a project develops and analyze data? Or does one rely on qualitative analysis, the actually question and survey approach of whether a person is better or worse off after a given project? Fortunately for me, GlobeMed, in partnership with the H.O.P.E Center, provided me both measurements over two days of unique site visits and insight into their remarkable work.

Day 1: Quantitative Data As I walked into the office of Margaret Asante, the head nurse of the HOPE Center, the first question in my head was “what was on the walls?” Covering the right wall of the Center was a series of post-it notes each dated and named. Margaret explained that this was how the center was visually tracking the birth weights of babies until the age of 5. It was not difficult to extrapolate from these figures that the organization was having an incredible impact on the health of the rural communities. The center sees nearly 90 patients a day both male and female, has started a testing lab, and plans to expand its services to prenatal care. In metrics alone, under the leadership of Margaret, with support from GlobeMed, the HOPE Center certainly is high performing, but what do the communities say?

Day 2: Qualitative Data After the details of day 1, Allyson along with three other members of the Northwestern GlobeMed summer team (Joey, Reema, Kathleen) led Alexis and I to Ando Village, one of the communities most impacted by the work of the HOPE Center. We all piled into a small taxi and weaved our way through cornfields until we reached the village and where we were greeted by a young woman named Esther. With some help from John (teacher) to rally the women, we sat down to learn about impact from the women themselves. At this point, I utilized what I call the “smile standard” (rating 0-10 on the size of a smile) to assess the project’s impact. The first impact indicator was the “10” smile of a young healthy girl sitting in the arm’s of her mother, after benefiting from an enriched diet thanks to support from the HOPE Center. The second impact indicator was the “10” smile of this girl’s mother, Cynthia, as the names of past GlobeMed volunteers were mentioned and the enthusiastic response the names elicited across the group of women. Thus, on qualitative smile standard, the project once again received high marks. I can imagine within a short time, the names of GlobeMed’s newest in the field volunteers will bring smiles across the faces of communities such as Ando Village as they promote health through outreach. GlobeMed was instrumental in the HOPE Center’s founding and continues to aid in the Center’s expansion of services and outreach in the surrounding areas. The facilities made possible with GlobeMed’s startup support and sustained by the Ghanaian government provide the areas an essential health resource. No matter the way one measures impact, GlobeMed’s partnership with the HOPE Center is truly a success and I look forward to hearing about all the new and exciting programs as this relationship evolves. Keep an eye out for new updates from this project at www.globalgiving.org/2071 and you can follow the students in the field experiences at www.globemedgrapevine.wordpress.com.

If you are interested in donating to GlobeMed please visit globalgiving.org/2071

Andrew and four other In-the-Field Travelers are currently in Ghana before they are making their way to Mali and Burkina Faso. They'll be visiting more than 30 GlobalGiving projects in the next month. Follow their adventures at http://itfwa.wordpress.com/.

Healing and H.O.P.E.

Allyson Westling — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 11:47:00 GMT

Children in Ando village

This summer, four GlobeMed at Northwestern students are spending our summer at the H.O.P.E. Center. We are each conducting community surveys in addition to project tasks at the Center. Our work will be helpful in better identifying the health care needs of the community, how the current childhood nutrition program can be expanded, and other aspects that will strengthen the partnership between GlobeMed and the H.O.P.E. Center in the coming year.

Our first two weeks in Ghana have shown us what an exceptional place the H.O.P.E. Center really is. We have been able to work closely with the Center’s staff, all of whom are dedicated, passionate individuals who care deeply about addressing the pressing health care needs within the community. The projects such as the childhood nutrition and sexual health outreach program are continuing to run well and we are currently looking for ways to improve upon and expand them. We are deep in discussion with the Center’s head nurse, Margaret, as well as the regional health director and the community organizer about ways to increase the childhood malnutrition project to reach a larger patient population. Our meetings have discussed the possibility of tailoring the program to meet the needs of pregnant women in the community as well as expand the nutrition demonstrations to the men (who do not traditionally see the importance of healthy eating habits). We as students will be conducting individual interviews and community meetings to discover the most pressing health care issues of each of the four surrounding villages. We will try to determine if the Center’s current programs are meeting their needs and what can be improved. This summer promises to be both productive and exciting!

People carrying water from the local water pump

GlobeMed summer team with head nurse, Margaret

Links:

Read the GlobeMed blog to keep updated on our summer!

Introducing our summer team!

Tiffany Wong — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 20:51:33 GMT

This summer, four GlobeMed@Northwestern members will travel to Ho, Ghana on a GROW trip to work on projects that will continue to build upon the Center’s existing programs in a sustainable fashion. Here is what the students have planned to do at the H.O.P.E. Center:

“I will be educating young mothers in the village of Kodzobi on how to prepare soybeans and introduce them into their childrens’ diets. In addition, I will be working on the education material to make it more accessible to the villagers and the mothers. As a group, we will also be conducting a general health survey in the surrounding villages to gauge a better understanding of what types of programs and projects we can implement in Ho in future years.” - REEMA GHATNEKAR

“I plan on supporting GlobeMed’s main goal of expanding the nutrition project during our six week stay in Ghana. My individual focus will be on direct patient care, comparing what we are used to in the US to the state of medical treatment in Ho. I want to also compare equipment that relates to patient care, such as instruments that monitor patient activity and those that are used for treating infection.” - JOEY GILL

“I will be establishing a demonstration farm in Kodzobi, one of the villages closest to the H.O.P.E. Center. There, H.O.P.E. Nurses will hold educational sessions for mothers about the child’s nutritional needs and the values of incorporating soybeans into the diet. They will also be taught how to farm the soybeans. Additionally, I will be implementing a survey across several of the villages near Ho, Ghana asking questions related to sexual health practices to learn if people utilize the H.O.P.E. Center as a medical clinic and what they would like to see offered.” - KATHLEEN LEINWEBER

“I will be assessing the nutritional needs of expecting mothers in the surrounding villages. I plan on interviewing approximately 30 women, who are either patrons of the Center or have never sought health care services there before. My interviews will assess the nutritional needs, knowledge, and resources available to these women as well as gain a clearer understanding of the cultural beliefs and practices surrounding pregnancy. This project will provide a link between the existing nutrition program and the advent of maternal health services to be offered at the Center in the near future.” - ALLYSON WESTLING

Links:

GlobeMed at Northwestern's spring newsletter!

Progress Underway

Tiffany Wong — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 06:00:38 GMT

Hi there!

It's been a while since we have last posted, but things are going swimmingly at the GlobeMed at Northwestern chapter. We raised over $5000 for the clinic through campus fundraising events and individual donations for the H.O.P.E. Center, and sent $1300 to the clinic for security and utility payments for the next six months. Also at Northwestern, we are preparing the next team of students to visit and work at the clinic this summer, expanding the nutrition project and adolescent sexual health center, as well as conducting research on maternal nutrition and correlation to pregnancy and healthy childbirth.

At the clinic, the nutrition project is well underway, with three peer educators trained and working in their communities to monitor soybean crop growth as well as health of children under five. Our sexual health program has successfully trained 100 students to become peer educators and lead workshops in secondary schools across Ho town. An annual report is being compiled and will be uploaded shortly.

Thank you for all your support, and please continue to stay updated on our cause!

Furthering nutrition project in Ghana

Tiffany Wong — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:14:43 GMT

head nurse at the H.O.P.E. Center

To the GlobeMed and Global Giving Community:

Having returned from Ho just five days ago, Lalith and I are still reeling from the eye-opening and transformative experience we had visiting our partner, the H.O.P.E. Center. In our four weeks there, we learned how the Center has become an example for health clinics in the region due to our unique model of partnership. Our preventative health programs, including the child nutrition project and a new adolescent sexual and reproductive health center, have been extremely well-received by the community, and the clinic's outpatient attendance is continuing to grow steadily.

During our trip, it became quite evident to us that Ghana is a country on the rise. Inspiration and pride from President Obama's visit in July linger on as signs with him and Atta Mills continue to line the streets, along with thousands of taxis displaying American flags on their windshields. The region is experiencing enormous growth, which has also resulted in a number of health problems. The National Health Insurance Scheme, which offers universal health care to all Ghanaians, has been facing funding shortages and has left many health centers without drugs or staff salaries for months. As areas begin to develop, proper sanitation is becoming an increasing problem as only 2% of the rural population have access to sewage systems.

This year, we will continue our work with the child nutrition, implementing Phase IV: Food Security, which trains peer educators to monitor and report soybean crop progress and child health to nurses at the H.O.P.E. Center.

We strongly urge you to give feedback on our projects and updates to keep the dialogue about our work and impact flowing. Thank you so much for your continued support to see our efforts through.

mothers at the child welfare clinic

with children at the Center

Links:

A Postcard from Improving Community Health in Ho, Ghana

Sheila Leonard — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:03:22 GMT

Sheila visited this project on May 21, 2009. She writes:

Sheila Leonard is a graduate student at George Washington University and intern at GlobalGiving. This summer, she is traveling in West Africa and visiting GlobalGiving projects.

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On May 21 I visited the H.O.P.E. center in Ho, Ghana led by Margaret Asante and Colleen, an American volunteer from GlobeMed. What struck me most about the project was the sustainable nutrition component. The team has farmed the surrounding lands with soybean and other protein filled products. Included in consultations is an allotment of these foods, in addition to the explanation of their nutritional and health value. Being able to teach through demonstration, not just words, is invaluable. Because I visited after 2pm, when the sun is highest, the health center was empty of patients. I was able to see the procedures and the farming system and talk with each of the health workers.

I admire their integration into current systems seen through their coordination with Ghana Health Services. For better or worse, it seems the American influence is important for success of the project. Although the drawbacks of lack of local knowledge and language are high, the American work ethic and desire to give without financial reward is greatly helping the health center. The head nurse (from Ghana) is a very driven woman eager to give back to her community in Ho and she is invaluable to the success of the project as well. The health center may not have started from the ground up but it is now utilized by the many many young mothers, children, and students in the communities surrounding the small city of Ho.

Sheila said she would tell her friends this project was a: Interesting, but could be more relevant to the community.

GlobalGiving is committed to incorporating many viewpoints on our 600+ projects. We feel that more information, especially from eyewitnesses helps donors like you continue to support organizations doing great work in the community.

Chapter Update!

Tiffany Wong — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:39:36 GMT

Health Workshop

Last weekend, GlobeMed at Northwestern raised over $700 from the Global Get Down, a night of performances and dancing to support the third phase of the nutrition project at the H.O.P.E. Center.

Former co-president, Colleen Fant, has been working on the project, and has also been helping facilitate sexual health education workshops through the new adolescent sexual health program. Pictures can be found below.

We would like to thank all our donors for making these two projects happen, and invite you to share thoughts and questions in the comments section!

Facilitation Materials

Margaret Lecturing

Update on Nutrition Project and Pathology Lab

Nikita Kohli — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 16:29:25 GMT

Laboratory in Action!

In 2008, the HOPE Center launched a community-based nutrition program with funding from GlobeMed at Northwestern. A demonstration farm was established at the HOPE Center and in the neighboring community of Ando. In addition, mothers were provided with complimentary meals with high-protein content and taught how to prepare those meals. Since the launching of the program, over 150 children have benefited from the program. 82 children were randomly selected for further monitorin; increases in weight gain and overall health were found in all of them. The Center looks forward to launching the next phase of the nutrition program, which will include an expansion of the program into the Sokode-Lokoe community. In January 2009, the diagnostic pathology laboratory opened at the HOPE Center supported by funding from GlobeMed at Northwestern. The HIV/Voluntary Counseling and Testing Center is also in the development phase and will include an emphasis on adolescent reproductive health services.

Laboratory in Action

Laboratory in Action!

Student Leaders Advance Partnership with the HOPE Center

Jon Shaffer — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 18:21:41 GMT

Four students-leaders from GlobeMed at Northwestern University are currently traveling to Ghana to work with the staff at the HOPE Center on a diverse set of projects aimed at increasing the capacity of the Center to improve the health of local community members.

Our team will work collaboratively, but will be focusing on separate projects. I will be focusing on installing an electronic medical records system on the two computers currently at the Center. We'll be using an open-source software system available from OpenEMR. The system seems to be very good for the needs of the Center, it is simple to use, and will be vastly more useful for keeping track of patient information and scheduling appointments than their current system in Excel. This will be a great improvement, and will allow the Center to more easily expand its client base.

Nikita Kohli, co-president along with me of GlobeMed at Northwestern, will be primarily working to collect large numbers of photos, video, and stories to use to create marketing and communication documents to publicize the work of the HOPE Center. She'll also be engaged in doing community asset mapping. This will include creating a geographical map of the region, interviewing community leaders to identify assets within the community, and then creating a useful document for Center staff to use in their community outreach work.

Sarah Mihalov, the global project coordinator for GlobeMed at NU, will be doing research funded by a Northwestern Undergraduate Research Grant. She will be conducting anthropology research on the topic of, Factors affecting feeding practices in the Volta Region, Ghana: The Relationship with Malnutrition. This research will be of direct use to future planning for the Center as we expand the community nutrition project and continue as a Regional Nutrition Center.

Finally, Colleen Fant, who was co-president of GlobeMed at NU with me last year, will be using her funding from the Mind the Gap Fellowship to spend nearly an entire year working at the Center, conducting ethnographic research with formal and informal interviews of community members about HIV needs, and translating that data into the implementation of an HIV voluntary counseling and testing center (VCT) at the HOPE Center.

Each of these projects reflect the long-term partnership between Northwestern students and grassroots health workers at the HOPE Center. By connecting the resources of passionate students through an effective partnership and concrete projects, we will be able to add value to the work already being done at the Center and will be able to increase the Center's capacity to improve health.

Colleen and I will be maintaining blogs during our trip, check them out! Links below:

Links: