Public Health Work

It is hard to believe that a month and a half has already passed. My experience thus far has truly been rewarding. I am thoroughly enjoying both the clinical and public health work. I have run into a few challenges along the way but most are related to logistical problems (nothing a little persistence can’t fix). One of my Schweitzer mentors sent me the following quote:

"Anyone who proposes to do good must not expect people to roll stones out of his way, but must accept his lot calmly if they even roll a few more upon it. A strength which becomes clearer and stronger through its experience of such obstacles is the only strength that can conquer them." ~Albert Schweitzer

It has been challenging to attempt to create this extensive health education program but I appreciate the process of planning and implementing this project. I have met some extremely motivated individuals with altruistic commitments. In addition I have learned a tremendous amount about how the Albert Schweitzer Hospital and the General Hospital in Lambarene are run and have come to understand some of the needs of the community.

One of the greatest challenges that I face though is the brevity of my stay and the possibility of implementing such a large project in this timeframe. It would be naïve to think that I could fully understand the intricacies of the health system and the numerous barriers that exist to implementing different programs. I do have the advantage of accessing a needs assessment that has been conducted at the hospital prior to my arrival. This assessment had identified health education as one of the major areas that needed improvement, hence the development of this training program.

I have proposed the idea of implementing a health education program to the administration at the Schweitzer Hospital, General Hospital and Ministry of Health and all are in complete support of our program. We will begin by conducting a training of trainers. We have identified health care workers at the two hospitals and will begin health education teaching sessions next week. Our goal is to address 6 health related topics (malaria, tuberculosis, malnutrition, buruli ulcers, HIV/AIDS and family planning) and provide the staff with basic information on the etiology and epidemiology of these illnesses, propose preventative measures, and treatment options. Those trained will in turn be able to hold teaching sessions for other health staff and patients in their respective services.

We are in the process of developing questionnaires which will be used to assess the quality and content of our health education sessions. As part of this program, I am also working with 2 local artists in developing illustrations that will be used in the patient education sessions. I have secured funding for the artist’s work and am currently looking into options for printing the illustrations in a flip-chart format. The long term goal is to provide a training conference for all health care workers in the region. Each health post located within the region will then be provided with a copy of the health illustration flip charts to be used in the teaching sessions.

We are planning on beginning the training on Monday February 9th. Teaching sessions will be held every Monday and Friday afternoon for the following 4 weeks. Teaching sessions will be conducted by hospital staff and public health professionals working in Gabon.