For Monday and Tuesday, I continued going to the Blooming Diamond Center to accompany the kids there and to teach them English. I interviewed with the program coordinator and identified factors for the lack of health education to the kids and their family. Using an old template from the center for assessment findings, we were able to identified needs for health education at the center. It was sad to see the children suffering with this condition that lowers their quality of life. However, it was rewarding to see a center like this in Vietnam to help these children and their family covering the cost of living and improving their lives little at a time. I was discussing with the program coordinator about finding charity and non-profit organizations in the States to help with the needs of the center.
For the second half of week 6, I went to remote villages to volunteer. We traveled to remote area to give gifts and check up on the town people living conditions. We went to different communities to give gifts and financial support. For each community we went to, we officially handed over the newly built house to the chosen family based on their needs. Each qualified family received a fan, a gift bag including cooking essentials such as oil and seasoning, and a small amount of financial support. When we arrived at the site, we gave greetings and encouragement to the community. We used successful stories to encourage the community to improve their living conditions and ultimately to improve their health.
I liked the message one of the public health workers gave to the community. The message was that the organization is giving the community a foundation and hope to start having a new and improved life, not a financial support so the people do not have to work. Beside giving gifts and encouragement to the community, we also interviewed shortly families about their occupations, living conditions, and their needs. This meets responsibility I – Assess needs, assets, and capacity for health education. We were able to examine the relationship among behavioral, environmental, and genetic factors that enhance or compromise health. We learned about the community ways of living and their lack of resources to health education.
