Introducing the Soroano Book Box Project

GHEI is proud to announce that the Soroano Book Box Project is officially in motion! Headed by Summer Serve and Learn 2012 Alumni John Schaidler, this unique pilot program is designed to improve literacy in the GHEI community by targeting young readers.

Yesterday John, Happy and Shantie traveled to Soroano to propose the idea to the Chief. Moving past the regular proceedings, John and Happy explained the plan: conduct an outreach program and then donate a set of carefully chosen books to each primary school classroom. Making culturally-appropriate, high-interest books available will improve students’ reading abilities by keeping them engaged in the material. Once students learn to read, they can read to learn and continue to expand their education.

 The Chief was immediately receptive. “You see for education, I take it as very important in my life. Though I could not go as far as I wanted, I want my children to go even further than is necessary. Without education, no country and no village would be able to develop. With education, you see that the town develops rapidly; so I am very interested.” In Returns to Investment in Education: A Global Update, George Psacharopoulus of the World Bank concludes that primary schooling remains “the number one priority.” For each additional year of schooling in developing countries, a student’s lifetime earnings are increased by 12.4% for girls and 11.1% for boys (Psacharopoulos, 1994).

With the Chief’s blessing, we made our way to Soroano’s schools to discuss the project with their teachers. The team explained that the donation would be comprised of all new books- mostly Junior African Writers Series and some useful textbooks. Passing around a few example JAWS books, one teacher admitted that he was so engrossed he had to read the whole thing through.

Soroano Head Teacher and Primary Teachers, John, Soroano Cheif and Elders, Shantie and Happy

JAWS books are unlike many of books that make their way to libraries in rural African villages. Children see themselves in JAWS characters, and can relate to them, their settings and their experiences. There is plenty of research showing that if children can imagine themselves in a book, they are going to spend more time reading it. So, if you want to teach a child to read for pleasure and instill the value of reading, that child needs a book that they can relate to. As John explained afterwards, “If you’re sitting here in Humjibre and everybody is White and drinking tea and playing croquet and doing things that have nothing to do with your life- of course you’re going to feel not engaged and not pay that much attention to that book.” These JAWS books however, will be cherished.

Sorting Some of the Books for Donation

This isn’t a concept that is new to John. You may recall his guest blog “They Do Not Like Green Eggs and Ham” about his failed attempt to introduce Dr. Seuss to Humjibre children last summer.

This time around will be a “step forward.” The Book Box Project was created specifically for the Soroano Community and they are excited about it. At the end of the presentation for Soroano’s schools, the one question the head teacher asked was “So when can we begin?”

“Monday.” The pilot will begin with a baseline survey to assess students’ current literacy levels and an outreach program using songs and other activities to teach them about proper ways to use and care for books. Once this has been completed, the book boxes will formally be presented to classrooms and the evaluation phase of the project will begin.

Be sure to check back in a few weeks to see the presentation ceremony!

Sources:

Psacharopoulos, G. (1994). Returns to Investment in Education: A Global Update. World Development, 22(9), 1325-1343. Retrieved June 7, 2013, from http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic1222150.files/Session%207/PsacharopoulosGlobalUpdate.pdf

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20 Questions

I was sitting on the porch the other night with our friendly neighborhood Peace Corps Volunteer, Raven KuyKendall, when a young man came by, introduced himself and said he wanted to ask us a few questions. The role of GHEI at the most basic level is to be a resource to the community. It’s our job to answer questions. So, when somebody came wanting to ask them, we were thrilled.

He stayed for almost an hour and asked us everything from how to tell if a condom is OK to use and how different viruses spread to how far a mosquito travels in its lifetime. Here is a bit of our conversation:

“What does it feel like if you have HIV?”

“It could feel like nothing. Some people even have HIV and have no idea.”

“So, how do you find out if you have it?”

“It’s in your blood. These are the places you can go to get tested and find out….”

“Then what should you do?”

“Tell others to get tested too. And always be careful, it’s not worth it to risk getting it.”

“I heard keeping your gutters clean can help prevent malaria. Why is that?”

“Mosquitoes breed in standing water. So you always want to get rid of any around your home.”

“Ok, what about the frog pond near the edge of the village? There must be a lot of mosquitoes there. Can you put oil or something in the water to kill them?”

“That’s a cool idea, but it probably won’t work.” Regardless, he was thinking. He wanted to know exactly what caused malaria, and how to eradicate it. “What about cleaning mosquito nets. Can you put them out in the sun to dry?”

“No, always dry them in the shade. See this line under the roof here? This is where we dry ours.” We talked about how fabrics fade in the sunlight and why you need to be extra careful washing bed nets.

“What kind of soap should you use? My mom makes soap from plantain leaves but said you shouldn’t use it to wash bed nets since the potassium would have a bad effect. Is that true?” He finally stumped us. “I have no idea but we can find out. Come back tomorrow and we’ll let you know.”

We chatted a little more and eventually he left. He thanked us and we told him he was welcome to come by with questions whenever he wanted. He said he would write a list of new ones for us.

At GHEI, We believe that healthy, well-educated young people have the power to lead their communities out of poverty.

He was a perfect example. This young man wanted to understand how to improve his own health and that of others in his community. He had the confidence to come to our house and just start asking questions.

We joked after he left that this was why we practically lived at the office- so that we were always available to help. Luckily, we have a great time doing it. And in case you were wondering, we couldn’t find any reason why plantain soap would be an issue.

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YEP, ECL Back to Classes

Today marks the end of the first full week of term three for Humjibre students. In Ghana, the school year is split into three terms, with the last starting in May and ending in July. With school back in session, the education team at GHEI has been super-busy; and as GHEI’s newest teacher-in-training, I have been working to understand how our classes are run.

With six extra contact hours per week, GHEI supplemental classes take a creative and engaging approach, and offer students a variety of resources that are not otherwise commonly available. Since their inception, these programs have been enormously successful. In the past several years, 100% of our Youth Education Program students have passed their standardized BECE exams. In 2012, 43% of YEP students scored in the distinguished “high pass” range in comparison to 27% throughout the district.

How do we achieve this? Observing some YEP classes, it became clear. GHEI utilizes a diverse group of teachers: from Humjibre, other parts of Ghana, and other parts of the world. They have very different styles- but share some common traits. GHEI teachers are intelligent, exceptionally motivated and trained to focus on making connections, critical thinking and enhancing study skills. In the classroom, they present fun, relevant, student-driven lessons.

The first thing you notice walking into a GHEI classroom is that everyone is smiling and engaged. Teachers comfortably interact with students, who happily focus on the task at hand. They have found the critical balance between joking around and getting serious work done. Our Education Program Coordinator, Shantie Bahadur, admitted: “I just want the kids to laugh. It needs to be fun.”

Beyond this, teachers create lessons that students can easily relate to. In a science class about energy, students discussed power production in Ghana and how the sun feels in the arid North. In English, two example sentences students came up with were: “Ghanaian women are beautiful” and “Humjibre girls are brilliant.”


Finally, GHEI teachers employ a teaching style that is sensitive to the strengths and needs of their students. Students participate in shaping the conversation and rather than being told the answers to their questions, they work alongside their teachers to discover them.

This formula of fun, relevant, student-driven teaching works. GHEI students are focused during their classes, think actively and are highly motivated. Barely anyone noticed me wandering around snapping photos. No one had to be reminded to participate in classroom discussions; and even after class time was over, students continued to ask questions. GHEI classes go beyond reviewing curriculum in a small-group setting to actually nurturing the growth of capable, competent, independent students.

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TBA Pilot Training and the UCLA Peds

It’s a muggy morning, you’re waiting. Not yet, but something at the community center is slowly taking shape. It’s the beginning of a two-day pilot training for traditional birth attendants (TBAs) by the UCLA pediatric residents Grace Deukmedjian, Mary Limbo and Michelle Aguilar. They posed the question early on: “What can you do to improve health in your community?”

One woman raised her hand and asked: “If there isn’t a car, what can we do?” TBAs are busiest in resource-poor environments. When there is not a health facility present- these are the women that expectant mothers turn to. They are well-experienced in delivering babies, but lack the same education and training that nurses and midwives have. A large part of their training is knowing when to refer women to better equipped health facilities.

Theoretically this works. Except places where TBAs deliver babies are places that do not have cars. This question prompted our residents to acknowledge an important point. We are in a rural village, births do not always go according to plan, and the situation will rarely be ideal. In this environment, the goal of the TBAs remains the same: do everything you can to protect the health of the mother and the baby.


For now, the best way to achieve this goal is preparation. Many of the area TBAs came. They were older women, each dressed in traditional fabrics with colorful intricate patterns and lively facial expressions. They chimed in with thoughtful questions and waited expectantly to see what their colleagues (Ghanaian and American) had to say. Many of the women nodded along and you could hear the occasional “mhmm” and “ehhen” in agreement. They are a group of women who care deeply about their patients and want to do everything that they can to best serve them.

There was no sense of privilege or superiority. This was a meeting of people who care for infants; cooperating and sharing their best methods. A translator was often needed, but the conversation flowed freely as the women discussed their experiences. Lessons evolved during the training and were tailored to respond to the questions raised by the participants. When the TBAs were split into small groups for skills practice, smiles and cheers erupted from each station from time to time, marking a newly breathing “baby.”

The residents have been in Ghana for about three weeks and have been extraordinarily busy. Beyond the pilot TBA training focused on neonatal resuscitation, clean delivery, and guidelines for referral, they have also been responsible for refresher trainings for area nurses and midwives. The residents are packing in way more than they anticipated, but simply explain their obligation: “Since we’re here, we’re gonna do it!”

After the TBA training finished, each woman was given a new kit of supplies and some minerals to drink (the TBAs all chose Sprite and residents all chose Coke). The pilot’s lasting impact is yet to be seen, but the TBAs have each found easy changes they can make to better their practice. If you can improve your ability to safely deliver and care for babies, you can improve health in your community.

To see more pictures from UCLA trainings, be sure to check out our Facebook where they will be posted on the 16th!

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Back to Humjibre, the "Resting Place"

The following is a guest blog written by Emily Wei, one of GHEI’s founders who recently returned to Humjibre for a short visit.

A few months ago, I arrived back in the village I once called home, eager to see old friends, colleagues, and students. In 2003, Ghana Health and Education Initiative was just a name, an idea, and a few people who wanted Humjibre to become a place where brainy students could go to school despite financial limitations, families could outdo the scourge of malaria, and community members contributed to make it all happen. Now, in 2013, in its tenth year of existence, GHEI and Humjibre are flourishing. On the land we were gifted by the community now stands not only the community center that I was privy to seeing built (not without struggles, and sadly a death of our engineer who the center is named after), but offices, a computer room, a library and ample volunteer housing space. The center is truly that, located at the center of the village, and a place for people to congregate, learn and hopefully, be inspired. I know in my short stay back in Humjibre and hanging out with some of the GHEI family, I certainly was.

Emily & Ernest

With ten years past, what struck me is not only how GHEI is flourishing as an organization, with a multitude of programs that we did not have when we started, and local and international staff that are incredibly dedicated and professional, but moreso, how past GHEI friends and participants have now become leaders in the community. I saw Ernest, now a full time teacher with GHEI, who when we first arrived, would come to our house all the time (which doubled as the first office) to read, talk and hang out. He has become an incredibly disciplined, well rounded, and might I say, fashionable young man who is now contributing greatly to the community, his family, and our work. Then there are those who have been the steadfast leaders who have been with us since the beginning- Clement, who continues to lead the work of GHEI and Sister Comfort, who hasn't missed a step in caring for GHEI international staff as though they are true Humjibrians- born and bred.

Emily & Sister Comfort

And maybe most inspiring was to see and hear about past GHEI students who are now teaching with GHEI and giving back to their community. Some of them are even aspiring to go abroad to study, to further their educations and broaden their experiences. Their path forward is only a reminder of how important the work GHEI is doing to encourage, strengthen and uplift those who just need a little boost to reach their goals and meet their incredible potential.

Clement, Emily, Mensah & Aggie

I look forward to coming back again (hopefully without letting 8 years pass by again) witness what other great things Humjibreans will do. But perhaps much sooner, Humjibreans will come visit us, the GHEI family, spread out around the US, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa!

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World Malaria Day, Part II

Coming back from Kojina, we realized we had done it. Three nights and three World Malaria Day events: on Wednesday in Humjibre, on Thursday in Soroano, and Friday, in Kojina. Back in Humjibre, setting up a whiteboard for the projector and watching the children dutifully put out plastic chairs for the audience; I had no idea how big these were going to be.

Each night, the program started with a DJ playing some music. After an opening prayer, the health team began with a presentation to educate the community on malaria symptoms, treatment and prevention. They used different speakers and a mix of videos; some starring the Humjibre community health workers (CHWs) and some funny animated ones (thanks to  Scientific Animations Without Borders!). Local CHWs and nurses were then introduced and the team opened the floor for a community discussion and Q&A.








The program was designed to reach participants of all ages. Sections like the bednet cost analysis were aimed for adults, while toffee for correct answers enticed children. Community members were engaged and excited to be there. As a newcomer to G.H.E.I., it was very cool to see the events organized and taken in with such energy by these rural communities.

Each night, there were more youths that attended the event than adults. One of the Soroano CHWs, Yaw Ntori (Original) said that he particularly enjoyed when young children correctly answered questions to showcase what they learned. His comment touched on one of the vital roles of the youth in communities here. When G.H.E.I. teaches children, they bring that information home and teach families.

Audience participation during the cost analysis, discussion and Q&A sections was striking. Starting with the cost analysis, the health team presented two scenarios: either pay to buy a subsidized bednet now, or pay for malaria later. Our very own Clement Donkor and Mensah Gyapong became celebrity emcees and asked for the audience’s help to estimate the price of costs like travel to the clinic, medications and missed work. People shouted hoping to see their own guesses come up on the projection. After all the costs had been tallied; it was significantly less expensive to buy a bednet now than risk malaria later.

For the discussion and Q&A sections, the emcees roamed through the crowd choosing contestants for a chance with the microphone. Once each speaker was chosen, everyone else listened attentively then cheered and clapped for them after they finished. While many people made jokes, others demonstrated what they learned.

The health team worked hard to prepare for World Malaria Day and they thought that by Friday running the event would be easy. But the afternoon brought a rainstorm, so the evening was cold and after a busy week; many people wanted to stay home and rest. However when the DJ turned his speakers on, the community came out. It was late, and it was cold in Kojina- but we finished strong with a large and engaged crowd throughout the whole event.

Be sure to check our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/GHEI.Ghana for more photos from the event!
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World Malaria Day, Part I

Living in Humjibre, pesky mosquitoes and the diseases that they carry- namely malaria- are a daily concern. It is estimated that around 3,000 children die of malaria every day worldwide. However for some people, the problems posed by malaria will rarely cross their minds. What is most surprising about this contradiction is that malaria is a completely preventable and treatable disease. To help raise global awareness and mobilize communities worldwide; April 25th, 2013 has been set aside as World Malaria Day.

Malaria is hyper-endemic in Ghana, with the entire population of 24.2 million at risk. While there have been many initiatives in Ghana to increase public understanding and access to effective methods in combating the disease, it continues to be a large issue. According to the Bibiani-Anwhiaso-Bekwai District Health Information Unit, malaria accounted for almost half of all outpatient cases and more than a third of admissions in the district where GHEI operates in 2011.

Here at GHEI, our Malaria Prevention Program focuses on increasing the use of insecticide treated bednets (ITNs) in Humjibre and its surrounding communities. This method is considered to be relatively very effective in decreasing the prevalence of malaria. Our program uses trained community health workers to assist families in hanging bednets, and then offer in-home education and monthly follow-up visits to ensure continued proper use.

This year for World Malaria Day, GHEI is presenting a series of outreach programs in Humjibre and the neighboring communities of Soroano and Kojina to support public education of malaria symptoms, treatment and prevention- with a focus on bednets.

Be sure to check back soon for Part II of this blog to see this year’s GHEI World Malaria Day outreach programs!

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Sources:

President’s Malaria Initiative. 2012. Malaria Operational Plan–FY 2012 (Year 5). Ghana.

Shiner, Cindy. "Malaria - Keeping a Crafty Killer On the Run." allAfrica.com. http://allafrica.com/stories/201304250108.html?aa_source=slideout (accessed April 25, 2013).

Akwaaba! (some things never get old to hear)

I have been in Ghana for just a few days and nothing is more striking here than the friendliness of the people. Arriving in Humjibre, I was immediately made to feel at home. Between the staff at GHEI and the organization’s countless friends in the community, I have already met so many people who I feel comfortable talking with and am happy to consider my friends.

My first impressions of GHEI showed that it is a well- valued organization that is deeply integrated into the Humjibre community. To me, something that stands out about GHEI is that its core is comprised of local staff who are truly invested in the village. On a tour, I was able to see many of the staff members’ family homes and realize their lifelong relationships to Humjibre. As a Westerner joining the organization, I am thankful for the opportunity to learn from the people here.

Cheif Nana Twum II, Adrian, Myself and some of the Village Elders

 Joining the local community, one of my first activities was to go and meet the chief. Walking into the palace, many of the elders were already seated. I followed the delegation that joined me from GHEI in shaking each of their hands several times before we were then seated to begin. The mission of our visit was to allow the chief to say thank you and goodbye to Adrian and then welcome me to the village as his replacement as GHEI’s Communications Officer.

When a Ghanaian says “you are welcome” they mean it. The chief assured me that my work would be valued in my new position at GHEI and offered my protection in the village. I was even promised that if I ever had any difficulties I could go to their council for help. While we were in a formal setting, I could tell that everybody there was extremely hospitable and this would be an approachable group of people.

These kids would have posed for photos all day given the chance

Feeling so welcomed has had a powerful meaning for me. With the chief’s assurance and faith that has been put in me by everybody that I have met here, I am sure that I will be able to fulfill my role and positively impact GHEI’s program. I have heard before that the people of Ghana are the friendliest in the world, but the people of Humjibre may be the friendliest in Ghana.

Happy and I ran into some of our other staff Saga and Shantie during my village tour

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The Need For Community Health Workers

Why are community health workers needed? Because there simply aren't enough highly trained medical personnel, like doctors and nurses, to meet the health needs of everyone living in sub-Saharan Africa, including Ghana. Several factors are at work to create this deficiency. Medical training is long and expensive and medical training centers can't keep up with the demand, especially as populations grow. Many trained medical professionals prefer to work in the cities or to seek work in other countries where the pay is better. Furthermore, AIDS and other diseases have stripped the medical community of valuable workers.

Many of the previous blogs make mention of the Millennium Development Goals, which address the most pressing human development needs around the globe. Of the eight goals, three aim to improve human health by reducing child mortality (MDG 4) and maternal mortality (MDG 5), and by combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases (MDG 6).

Ghana has serious needs in all of these areas, but never more so than for people living in rural areas, who may have quite a distance to go to receive any kind of professional medical attention and may be impossibly far from the nearest hospital. In many cases they are also too poor to pay for expensive medical services and medicines. On top of this, they may be fearful or mistrustful of leaving their homes and being attended by clinic workers they don't know.

One way to improve their access to basic health care is to provide the services of community health workers (CHW). A CHW is an individual from the community who is rudimentarily trained to provide basic health services, mainly to those who are under-served. Their services may include prenatal visits, post-natal mother and infant care, vaccinations, counselling on sexually transmitted diseases, and specialized programs like malaria and tuberculosis prevention.

The person may be a volunteer or may be paid a salary for their work. The advantage in having a local person fill this role is that they know the local customs and language, and are more likely to be accepted by the community than an outsider of the same standing. CHWs usually maintain their ties within their community and, with proper support, tend to stay with the job.  The people they serve typically trust them, and the CHWs have a respected standing in the community.

Through their provision of primary health care, CHWs contribute valuably to the whole community, but they are particularly important in improving the health of children. In the case of Humjibre and the surrounding communities, CHWs have been involved in every step of our malaria prevention programs, and their dedication has led to a marked rise in the ownership and use of insecticide-treated bednets.

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Sources

Global Health Workforce Alliance. 2010. Community Health Workers - Key Messages. http://www.who.int/workforcealliance/knowledge/resources/chwkeymessages/en/index.html

Lehmann, Uta and David Sanders. 2007. Community health workers: What do we know about them? The state of the evidence on programmes, activities, costs and impact on health outcomes of using community health workers. School of Public Health

University of the Western Cape. Report for the World Health Organization, Geneva.

Morrow, R.H. 1983. A primary health care strategy for Ghana. pp. 272-299 in Morley, D., J.E. Rohde, and G. Williams (eds.) Practising Health for All. Oxford University Press: Oxford. 272–299.

International Children's Book Day

Today is International Children’s Book Day and the GHEI Community Library is a hive of activity. It seemed fitting to have a quick chat with Library Administrator Lawrence Donkor on this special day:

How many children come to the library each day? 
Around 35 children come to the library on an average day, though some days it's more. It depends on their school schedule and any events that are taking place in the community.

What kind of books do you think the children enjoy the most?
They like to read picture books, especially by African authors. They like seeing pictures of the story, and it helps them understand. These books are relevant to the children – they’re culturally relatable. Some books from the West don’t make sense to the kids, but there are also lots of great books from around the world that the children love.

What children’s book would you recommend to teachers and parents?
Hmm (long pause). Caps for Sale! It’s about a peddler selling caps, roaming up and down the street, getting tired since no one will buy a cap. He falls asleep and wakes up and sees his caps are all gone.

It turns out monkeys from the tree he was sleeping under took them. It’s an interesting book, and when you read it to the kids they’ll all start laughing.

Thanks Lawrence!

Building literacy skills is a key element of our education programs here at GHEI. Reading skills will serve as the foundation for a student's entire academic career. GHEI is launching an internship program this summer that will pilot the expansion of GHEI’s Community Library programming to the rural community of Soroano. This new literacy campaign aims to increase primary and junior high school students’ ability to develop and employ literacy strategies through a school-based outreach.

Read more about this internship program here. Please help us spread the word about this exciting opportunity! 

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