Strained health systems around the world face infrastructure deficiencies and shortages of medicine and staff. The needs of patients and the burden of disease, paired with these ongoing system-wide challenges, not only limit care, but also restrict access to professional…
Over the course of numerous overseas assignments, anesthesiologist Lena Dohlman, MD, MPH, has seen the incredible impact HVO volunteers have on the quality and availability of care in resource-scarce countries. Dr. Dohlman has also witnessed how an overseas teaching assignment can inspire…
HVO is thrilled to announce a new volunteer opportunity in orthopaedics at Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manila, the Philippines. PGH is seeking volunteers to augment the training of roughly 20 orthopaedic residents completing the hospital’s four-year residency training program.…
The Republic of Haiti has a population of just over 10 million people with roughly 300 dentists serving the entire country. The majority of those dentists practice in and around the capital city of Port-au-Prince and other urban centers, leaving…
In November 2013, Narhari Timilshina, MPH – a public health expert and clinical epidemiologist – traveled to Bhutan with an ambitious agenda: to create the country’s first cancer registry. A cancer registry is an essential tool for gathering information about…
As an organization focused on our global mission, Health Volunteers Overseas doesn’t always have the opportunity to celebrate the community where we have based our operations for nearly 30 years – Washington, D.C. Fortunately, we will have that opportunity this…
In February 2015, the Kathmandu Post (Nepal’s leading English language newspaper) reported that the number of cancer cases in the country was on the rise, with cervical and ovarian cancers ranking among the five most-common cancers for women. HVO is…
The usual practice was to leave the plastic clamp in place on the umbilical cord until the cord itself fell off. Staff was horrified when I suggested removing it after 48 hours, since it was hard and scratchy on the…
This week HVO is celebrating our nursing volunteers in honor of National Nurses Week. What impact do our nursing volunteers have on the institutions where they serve and the health workers they train, and what do they gain in return?…
Editor’s note: The following post was written by Emily Scott, RN, vice president of One Nurse at a Time. One Nurse at a Time is a nonprofit organization created to help nurses become involved in the humanitarian and volunteer arena.…
Health Volunteers Overseas recently had the pleasure of announcing our partnership with Lao Friends Hospital for Children (LFHC) for an anesthesia training project in Luang Prabang, Laos. We are delighted to announce the expansion of our partnership with LFHC to…
Editor’s Note: The following piece was written to recognize the outstanding contributions of HVO on-site coordinator and recent Golden Apple Award recipient Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Chung. HVO is incredibly grateful for the hard work and dedication of all of our…