Volunteer with Public Health Project in Peru

Through Vivé Peru I was able to receive irreplaceable public health experience and personal development while living in Peru. I learned so much about community health and culture that I am so grateful for!

The public health program of Vive Peru focused on Señor de Los Milagros, a Community here in Trujillo that with Vive Peru's help has reversed the growing health problems in their population through education and community involvement. Through home visits and workshops with community leaders, we became very involved with the people there, were made to feel very at home and like the work we were doing was really having an impact.

Had such a great time! Wasn’t sure what to expect but it definitely exceeded my expectations! The welcome activities were super fun and the group was awesome. The coordinators are very helpful and fun too. We did a lot of work in the community and the kids are great. It’s very eye opening to see the differences between the US and Peru. It was also interesting to learn about the Peruvian health care system and how the way they do it here. So happy I chose to do this program and definitely recommend it to anyone interested in the health care field or learning about other cultures!

Being able to study abroad in Peru was the best experience I have done! I was able to not only volunteer & give back to the community but travel to different destinations in Peru; I got to have my cake & eat it too.

I had a wonderful time, met wonderful people and made local Peruvian friends that I am going to be sad to leave. Worked with children a lot but did not do much healthcare teaching with them. Was not at all what I thought was going to happen, I had a vision more of working in clinics, hospital, learning about the Peruvian healthcare system, improving lower income communities with strict direct healthcare. Instead there was lots of babysitting going on while the teachers did most of the healthcare teaching with moms of communities and future volunteers need to know that so they can expect that because personally I am not good with kids and chose a major that is healthcare work based not a teacher major.

I had a great time living in a new culture for six weeks. Working with the community was an awesome thing to do! I fell in love with the children of the community! Being able to make a difference in the people’s lives was great! I am forever thankful for everything that I was able to learn from them and everything that they were able to learn from me. I loved living with a host family. I will forever stay in touch with them they now feel as if they are my second family. I couldn’t be more thankful for this experience in another culture. I will take home so much from this experience. I have found some of my favorite foods here I have found a sense of how community should be. I found out more about myself and what I would like to do with my life.

I loved this experience. It taught me so much and opened my eyes to many new things. In the US everything is provided so to provide resources to those who can’t afford anything is a fantastic feeling.

I am forever thankful to Vive Peru for giving me the opportunity to fulfill a lifelong dream of traveling to Peru and working in a Latin American country and a different health care system. This was a great experience with a lot of cultural immersion, practice working in the community and talking to families in Spanish about anemia prevention and nutrition. I learned so much about the Peruvian healthcare system and loved spending my free time exploring different parts of Peru. I am so thankful to Vive Peru staff for all of their help coordinating, planning, and simply being there for us while we adjusted to being abroad. Peru is incredible and I highly recommend this program if you’re looking for a program to practice your Spanish, work in a healthcare setting, meeting health professionals, and working directly with a low-income community.

I had a life changing and eye opening experience, ill take what I learned here with me everywhere. I have actually decided to change the focus of my career to researching and trying to rebuild the cognitive ability of children suffering from anemia.

Volunteering with Vive Peru was an unforgettable experience. I had the chance to immerse myself in the beautiful culture of Peru and explore the country on the weekends, all while helping out the community during the week. I know they have impacted my life for the better and I hope I did the same.

I was able to intern with Vive Peru by focusing on health education, parasite prevention and assisting with health campaigns. At the time, I was trying to find a place where I could complete some internship hours in order to receive my B.S. in Public Health. This abroad experience fit perfectly into what I was looking for. I learned a lot from the staff, community and the peers around me throughout my volunteer experience. I met some amazing people, that I will never forget and had an awesome time immersing in the culture and trying new foods. The ceviche was delicious! My host mom was such a kind and very lovely women. She was always so sweet. I also got to do some work in the community, Senor de Los Milagros, and the families and children there will brighten up your day. They are always so excited to meet you! Everyone you meet, will try to make you feel right at home. I always felt safe and comfortable. This experience is very hands-on, and I would definitely recommend it to others looking for a way to help others while traveling abroad.

I have been with Vive Peru twice now. The most recent time was in the summer of 2018. As a public health intern I spent time working in her community, doing projects with the leaders of the community, and organizing health campaigns. I gained a lot of experience. I was also applying to dental school and the coordinators allowed me to shadow a dentist during one of our campaigns which was a great experience. They are great at working with you, but you may have to stay on them to get it done. In addition, I had an amazing but homestay. I loved my host (grand)mom and roommates. We also had the weekend to travel and get to know peru, so be prepared for spontaneous weekend trips. Due to difference in the culture somethings things can seem a little disorganized, but for anybody looking to gain experience in an immersion situation (while frustrating) this is part of being exposed to the culture. Overall, I have loved my experience with Vive Peru. Prepare to be flexible and take any opportunities that come up and you will have a great trip.

Studying abroad with Vive Peru was an amazing experience. Throughout my study abroad I learned a great deal about Public Health in Trujillo. I also got to learn about the culture and community in Truijllo. One of the best part of the program were the people that you work with and build relations with throughout your time in Trujillo. The community that we got to work with is incredible, they are so kind and open to new ideas. The kids at Señor de los Milagros will literally melt your heart with their adorable smiles, love, laughter, and intelligence. The entire community of Señor de los Milagros is marvelous and the promotoras do an amazing job helping the community prepare for health initiatives and aid the community in a new healthy lifestyle. If Vive Peru did not only do a great job of finding a community that was truly incredible to work with, but they also did an amazing job finding host family placements. The host family I stayed with also played an important role in my study abroad. The family I stayed with welcomed me into their home with open arms and I couldn't be more grateful for their kindness, patience, and love throughout my time in Trujillo. They were so incredible that I felt at home with my host family. The host family is where I also got to learn about culture and community in Trujillo. The family took my roommates and I to family functions, new activities (fútbol games), taught us how to make chocolate, and other amazing foods. The family was truly amazing and I still talk to my host family even after months of coming back from the study abroad. Now all of these memories and possibilities wouldn't have happened without the staff, volunteers, and the director of Vive Peru. They truly want you to have an amazing time in Peru, they not only want you to learn about Public Health in Trujillo but they also want you to have an amazing experience in Peru. They work on and off the clock to make sure that the volunteers are getting the best of their time in Trujillo. Vive Peru is a hands on program that truly helps capture what it's like to live in Trujillo.

Vive Peru exceeded my expectations. The staff is very knowledgeable in all aspects of public health and provided a mixture of both hands on activities and insightful seminars that were related to the Peruvian healthcare system and public health. They continue to impact various communities and schools year round. The most memorable experience for me was working with the community health educators (promotoras) and the children of the community Señor de Los Milagros (SLM). I also had the privilege to help assist in the anti-parasitic campaign and human papilloma virus (HPV) campaign while also crafting helpful health lessons to teach the children at SLM. My overall experience with my host family was exceptional. I honestly believe that my experience would have not been as amazing as it was if I didn't have an amazing host family and group of amazing advocates (Cesar and Claudeth). Thank you Vive Peru for such a memorable experience! I look forward to going back to Peru soon!

Words cannot even begin to express the impact my experience with Vive Peru has had on my career and academic life. After graduating with my BS in Public Health, I was looking for an abroad experience that was based in public health, allowed me to practice my Spanish (in other words no too advanced), and wasn't extremely expensive. After hearing great reviews from other classmates in my degree cohort, I decided to apply for the 2-month stay. The application process was a bit lengthy but once it was completed, I was swiftly accepted and able to start to process of planning my trip. Everything from the travel to the orientation week was really well planned and made me feel safe and comfortable in my new home. I didn't realize how rusty my Spanish was until I was in Peru, but my Peruvian host mother made me feel right at home, helped me with my basic Spanish, and did everything she could to make me feel at ease. My homestay was walking distance from the Vive Peru office and the commute quickly became one of the favorite parts of my day. My duties with Vive Peru were focused on health education, parasitic prevention, and volunteer coordination. I was responsible for programming the health education for an after-school program aimed at ages 14 and under in the vulnerable neighborhood of Senor de Los Milagros. I developed materials for Community Health Workers, or Promotoras, including home visit scripts, educational materials, and community activities. Additionally, I led interview skills training for the Promotoras to improve the impact of the home visits within the community. Alongside the Promotoras, I conducted 15 qualitative home visit interviews to assess general health needs and parasitic risk factors within the home. As part of a nationwide effort, I participated in the Peruvian Parasitic Prevention Campaign by providing education and distributing antiparasitic medication to over 200 individuals in neighborhoods, school, and markets. Lastly, since my time in Peru was longer than the average volunteer, I facilitated orientation activities for other incoming public health volunteers. Overall, the experience really deepened my appreciation for public health and vulnerable populations. My Spanish improved considerably along with my ability to adapt in difficult situations. I made lifelong friends with the coordinators I worked with and have plans to return and continue working with the organization during my Masters in Public Health.

Coming as a new volunteer to Peru was a scary and exciting thought. Vive Peru not only made my experience safe and comfortable, but memorable with plenty of activities that will stay with me for the rest of my life. The Global/Public Health program in Trujillo, Peru immersed me in the beautiful Peruvian culture, while also highlighting the health challenges that these communities face. Us volunteers were very hands-on with health campaigns, school lessons, home visits, a mural, and other program components that directly affected the community. I really felt as though I was part of the community and making a difference, rather than an observing stranger. Apart from the fulfilling week of work, the weekends were left to us to explore the many attractions of Peru. I have made lifelong connections and friends from the 6 weeks that I was volunteering in Trujillo. The home stays, program activities, and staff all exceeded my expectations as a volunteer.