Impact on the Community and Participants

The impact of VIIDAI on the communities they work with is considerable. The community benefits from a significant increase in access medical resources – in the form of medical expertise, health education and promotion, as well as much needed medical services. Because of high levels of interest, cooperation and participation, colonia leaders build capacity to continue the work of the universities beyond the VIIDAI trip.

In addition, the student participants of VIIDAI also gain valuable insight into global health issues, while being rewarded with experiences that they will carry with them into their futures. Students benefit from a truly unique opportunity to apply skills learned in the classroom to a hands-on setting. They learn from professors and community leaders, as well as peers from collaborating institutions. The exchange is as much cultural as it is academic and VIIDAI has helped build the cultural sensitivity of the universities and the participants through working with indigenous communities. Students have the opportunity to creatively develop and implement international public health research projects – a multi-disciplinary challenge. Furthermore, the research accomplished during these VIIDAI projects contributes to the field of international public health.

Clinical Services of VIIDAI

• Health pre-consultations with medical students
• Health consultations with medical doctors
• General Health Clinic
• Dental Clinic
• Eye Clinic
• Female Health Clinic
• Pharmacy Services

Public Health Projects of VIIDAI

In consultation with community leaders, needs assessment projects are conducted by VIIDAI every semester.  The specific services and details of the projects vary by need each year, but generally include:

• Health Education Services
• Health Survey Teams
• Family Planning
• Anthropometry
• Nutrition

Major Impact Projects

Each VIIDAI trip focuses on a major project that addresses a critical need of the community, as identified by previous trips. These major projects include:

Family Planning Project
Fall 2004-Current  (VIIDAI 13-Current)
In the Fall of 2004 a needs assessment with community leaders of one colonia identified high parity and gaps in family planning as particularly challenging for families to cope with, and a high priority issue for the community. Focus groups, in-depth interviews and a quantitative survey were conducted to gather base-line information on knowledge and practice of contraception, socioeconomic status indicators, and reproductive history of women in the community. A principal objective of this pilot study was to assess the feasibility of implementing a community based intervention in family planning.

Improved Lab Services
Spring 2007 (VIIDAI 18)
Although laboratory services have been offered during VIIDAI since VIIDAI-1, during VIIDAI-18   improved laboratory services were offered due to the acquisition of a new microscope.  Students are now able to perform examinations of samples collected during the field experience in the colonia, instead of waiting until they return to the university to conduct such examinations.

Nutrition Project
A nutrition project was recently implemented in one of the colonias.  Students conducted a community health assessment to examine the typical meals consumed by community members.  In depth interviews were also conducted with women of the colonia.  The information gathered will be used to design nutrition education activities and to enhance the nutritional value of foods offered to students through the school kitchen.

Project TIES
Through Project TIES, UABC students are trained on community HIV prevention skills.  During the VIIDAI weekends these students conduct health surveys, HIV rapid testing and provide health education regarding condom use within the community as well as hotels and truck stops.

Lead Project
Fall 2006-Spring 2007 (VIIDAI 17-18)
During VIIDAI-17, students conducted a community assessment to determine unsafe exposure to lead among community members.  Students spoke with community members and tested household cooking pots for lead.  Households whose pots tested positive for lead were provided with an opportunity to receive new lead-free pots, through the support of collaborating Rotary clubs.  During VIIDAI-18 a follow-up assessment was conducted to determine the impact of this small-scale pot exchange program.  While data are still being analyzed from this follow-up, if the data reveal that the exchange program has an impact on the community's exposure to lead, additional interventions related to reducing unsafe exposure to lead can be pursued within the community. 

Anemia Project
Spring 2006 (VIIDAI 16)
Anemia is a major public health problem in developing countries. Approximately 2 billion people worldwide suffer from anemia and the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 9 out of 10 of these are in developing countries. Anemia can be caused by blood loss, parasitic infections or nutritional deficiencies, and less commonly, genetic disorders. Anemia caused by nutritional deficiencies is most commonly the result of iron deficiency. As a result of anemia, persons may experience impaired cognitive performance and development, compromised immune status, decreased work capacity and, in women and children, increased maternal and infant mortality.
Previous work in one of the communities, showed the anemia prevalence in the community to be higher than that of the national average in Mexico. The anemia project assessed the prevalence of anemia and identified potential causes in indigenous communities in Mexico as a matter of public health importance. If anemia prevalence is severe and causes of anemia are determined, steps can be taken to target persons at risk for anemia at both the individual and community level through interventions developed to prevent and reduce the frequency of anemia.

Water Project