Along the JF Trail: Work Hard, Play Hard

Eight months in site have come and gone, and I’ve recently realized that I have yet to write anything about the work that I’m doing.

I have two primary projects: working with moms, and working with teens.

Moms:

I work with moms who have children under 3 years old and pregnant women in two different districts: Tantará, where I live, and Huamatambo, which is about a 2 hour walk. The goal is to educate them on nutrition, early childhood stimulation, and prevention of diseases, while promoting healthy habits within the household. The way to achieve this is through house visits, house visits, and more house visits.

A nutrition session in Huamatambo

First, with my Health Center, we elected and trained Health Promoters so that they can also visit moms to reinforce healthy practices.

My Health Promoters

I have just finished visiting houses with my Health Promoters to do a baseline survey. This month, we’ll start teaching on an individual basis how they can have healthier, happier kids.

Demonstrating proper hand-washing

Teens:

I have a group of 8 teens (between 12 and 16 years old) doing a program called Pasos Adelante (Steps Forward). Pasos focuses on sexual and reproductive health, but also covers self-esteem, values, future plans, etc. With the obstetrician in my Health Center, we meet about two times a month after school and talk about different themes. The plan is that next year, they will act as leaders in their community and go into classrooms to teach their peers.