We implement innovative, effective programs that offer teaching, training, and continuing education to local health care workers in resource-scarce countries. We focus on meeting the needs of our partners and creating programs that build local capacity.
How does HVO contribute to global health?
HVO provides access to professional development opportunities for health care workers in resource-constrained settings.
With the help of our volunteers, HVO provides free trainings for health care workers to enhance their knowledge and elevate their clinical skills. We estimate that from 1987-2021, our volunteers provided 205,846 days of education. Our trainings come in the form of clinical and/or didactic lectures that are relevant and culturally-sensitive. We also facilitate case consultations for practitioners to discuss the diagnosis and treatment of medical cases. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, our volunteers traveled to our partner sites to deliver the trainings. During the pandemic, trainings were delivered online. The two figures below provide a glimpse of the quantity of trainings that we’ve provided throughout the years.
Besides organizing our own trainings, HVO also helps to defray the cost of participating in other professional development opportunities for health workers in low and middle-income countries. From 2011-2022, we awarded 243 scholarships for our colleagues abroad to participate in virtual and in-person opportunities outside of HVO’s offerings.
Who does HVO’s work impact?
On average, we train about 3,100 health care professionals per year. In our 36 years of existence, HVO has implemented 261 projects across the world with 243 institutional partners. The top three partner institutions that have welcomed the greatest number of volunteers are as follows:
Most of our projects are in Asia (39.8%) and Africa (29.5%). The graph below shows the geographic spread of our projects over the last 36 years.
We are proud about the longevity of our partnerships. We take the fact that 30% of our partnerships have lasted more than 10 years as an indicator of satisfaction from our partners regarding our work. In a recent poll, 86% of our on-site coordinators expressed the sentiment that the partnership with HVO has led to sustainable improvements at their institution. Our program model incorporates our partners into the design and implementation of projects.
HVO’s work also impacts our volunteers who provide the trainings. As one of our volunteers said in 2021, “HVO’s work changes the lives of both the learners and the volunteers. This is very important and should not go unnoticed.” Our volunteers often report that they find the opportunity to connect with colleagues abroad and the exposure to health care practices in other settings to be valuable for their professional and personal development.