When Dr. Leo Odongo moved from Mbarara, Uganda, to the smaller city of Kabale in September 2016, he noticed a concerning trend. Patients in Kabale and the surrounding rural areas did not have access to dermatology services. Even more concerning,…
Our eyes may be the windows to our souls, but our mouths are a pretty good indicator of our overall health status. Oral disease is a significant health problem that can affect an individual’s ability to eat, drink, speak, and…
At Health Volunteers Overseas, we often talk about the transformative power of education. Health workers who are given access to hands-on training, resources and mentorship gain the confidence and skills needed to better serve their patients. Patients who receive vital…
We all have the power to improve our own heart health. Whether we choose to eat healthier, exercise, quit smoking, or reduce our alcohol consumption, a small change can make a big impact on our cardiovascular health. However, on World…
HVO is pleased to announce the expansion of our pediatric program to include a new training project in partnership with Lumbini Medical College and Teaching Hospital (LMC) in Tansen, Nepal. LMC is a center for teaching and training located about…
This past Monday, the US observed the passage of Labor Day, an annual holiday celebrating the country’s labor workforce. For many school districts throughout the US, Labor Day also marks the start of the academic year. The dual significance of…
For Karen Stolman, MD the motivation to complete her first global health volunteer assignment came from falling in love. “It started with falling in love with the country of Costa Rica, and having already visited and being fluent in Spanish,”…
Access to obstetric care in Cambodia is improving rapidly. According to the 2014 Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey (2014 CDHS), 95% of expectant mothers surveyed received antenatal care, and the number of births attended by a skilled health worker increased…
Volunteering with HVO is an opportunity to go a bit outside your ‘comfort zone.’ Every volunteer, of course, defines his/her own comfort zone and experiences the challenges in his/her own unique way. So, in fact, no two volunteer experiences are…
Last year, as HVO marked 31 years of service, we shared an article co-authored by HVO’s Director of Program Design & Evaluation, April Pinner, MSPH, RD and Executive Director, Nancy Kelly, MHS — Health Volunteers Overseas: 30 Years of Leveraging…
Although 2018 Golden Apple Award Recipient Cynthia Howard, MD, MPHTM “had never really volunteered before,” when she first learned of HVO in 1996, the pediatrician already had ample experience practicing medicine in resource-scarce settings. “I had worked a bit abroad,”…
From March 2013 to May 2015, HVO volunteers delivered a series of continuing education courses, a leadership institute, and more than 300 clinical mentoring sessions to Rwandan physiotherapists, as part of a USAID-funded project. In total, 168 physiotherapists participated in…