HHI’s Three Goals in the Dominican Republic:

1. Develop a Community Health Workers Program (Formación de Cooperadores de Salud) that will equip local people with the skills, knowledge, and support necessary to improve health within their own communities.
2. Coordinate and facilitate the on-the-ground systems that enable HHI’s medical service trips to effectively meet existing health care needs.
3. Build and establish the infrastructure, community contacts, and organizational partnerships that HHI requires to have a continuous and effective presence in the Dominican Republic.

Our Objectives for Reaching these Goals:

For our community health workers…

• Train one or two cooperadores de salud in eleven communities to serve as providers of basic first aid and patient care; as promoters of health through education and support of existing health systems, including the HHI medical service trips; and as leaders within their communities who act as agents of positive change.
• Establish systems to support the Community Health Workers in the long term, with the understanding that sustainability requires the community’s investment and interest.

For our medical service trips…

• Work with local leaders and community members to gauge the outcomes, successes, and challenges resulting from medical service trips.  Ensure that this feedback is incorporated into improvements to the trips and the design of any community health or public health oriented intervention.
• Manage the Community Health Workers in providing logistical support to the trips and facilitating follow-up care for patients.
• Create a patient tracking system that will allow HHI physicians to make more informed medical decisions for individual patients, measure health improvement, facilitate continuity of care, and provide a system of data collection for medical service trips.

For our organizational continuity and growth…

• Collaborate with other organizations and providers working in community development and health promotion. Develop a network of partners and resources to help community members access the services and opportunities available.
• Establish the physical and systems infrastructure to support community-informed medical service trips that work in partnership with Community Health Workers.

Evaluation and Next Steps:

• Receive regular feedback from Community Health Workers, local leaders, and community members to ensure programs are meeting local needs and health priorities.
• Follow up with patients to track progress and provide continuity of care, and continue to improve upon HHI’s role in meeting their health needs.
• Implement disease prevention and health promotion programs in response to assessment outcomes and community input.  Work in partnership with the community to ensure we respond to their most pressing concerns and fill a gap in health care access.