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Rural Family Health Educator

Peace
Corps

APPLY NOW

COUNTRY
Belize
REGION
Central America and Mexico
SECTOR
Education Health
LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT
None

ACCEPTS COUPLES
No
POSITIONS AVAILABLE
25

APPLY BY
Oct. 1, 2017
KNOW BY
Dec. 1, 2017
DEPART BY
June 24, 2018

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Before You Apply

You can only have one active Peace Corps Volunteer application, so choose a
position that best fits your skills and interest. You have the opportunity to tell us if
youd like to be considered for other openings and more about the ones that interest
you most!

Project Description
Peace Corps Belize is proud to celebrate our 55th consecutive year providing support and
resources through grassroots volunteer assignments throughout Belize. Over 2,000 Peace
Corps Volunteers have served in Belize since the program began in 1962, and we continue to
work shoulder to shoulder with our Belizean host agencies, communities, and counterparts in
the spirit of promoting world peace and friendship. The Rural Family Health Project in Belize is
unique in that it gives Volunteers the opportunity to work in the field with various community
leaders, addressing pressing health-related issues in areas where resources are scarce and need
is great. These working relationships often become the foundation from which successful
projects and activities are implemented and which have ultimately had proven impacts in the
lives of community members.

Peace Corps Belize's Rural Family Health Project has two goals:
1) to support families to adopt positive behaviors and practices that improve the health of
mothers and children;
2) to reduce the burden of non-communicable diseases.

Peace Corps/Belize Rural Family Health Volunteers coordinate with local health partners to
carry out health education and promotion in rural communities where resources are scarce.
Volunteers work to provide increased access to health information, services, and skill
development through trainings, promoting primary maternal, neo-natal, and child health care
principles and enhancing awareness and management of non-communicable disease among
community members. The project emphasizes behavior change and individual empowerment
through carefully designed activities that focus on increasing positive changes in everyday
lives.

Volunteers also teach public health topics in community and classroom settings. Projects
include undertaking knowledge, attitude, and practice surveys in communities, assisting
clinics or government planning offices in identifying health education needs, devising
educational programs to address local health conditions, assisting in marketing of messages
aimed at improving local health practices. Volunteers may also work in local health clinics to
develop health education and outreach programs. Volunteers should have the willingness to
work collaboratively in a community setting, as work will require training facilitation, lesson
planning and delivery in a classroom setting, and public speaking.

Additional activities a Volunteer may engage in include:

Serve as a resource for and provide training to rural community health workers in health
topics
Support training for community members, school students and faculty, and village councils
on public health topics and activities
Assist community health workers to design activities to improve infant and young child
nutrition through health education and promotion
Promote the prevention of childhood illnesses by improving the quality of health information
about child care and immunizations to reduce child mortality in rural communities
Promote individual and community physical activities to foster physical and mental well-
being and social connectedness in rural communities
Assist local health and education officials in implementing health education and promotion
activities to help families adopt positive behaviors.

Belize is arguably the most culturally diverse country in Central America and Volunteers will
have the unique opportunity to learn about and interact with people from a wide variety of
backgrounds. Belize is also home to incredible flora, fauna, and land and seascapes. While you
will certainly have the opportunity to experience the natural wonder Belize has to offer, it is
expected that all Volunteers maintain focus on their safety, community projects, and
community integration throughout their entire service. PC/Belize Volunteers are dedicated,
competent, responsible, respectful and professional and as such we have enjoyed a high level
of community, counterpart and government support. Any individual hoping to join the Posh
Corps to spend two years at the beach by coming to Belize will be sadly disappointed, and
should seek alternative career options. Those individuals willing to make sacrifices and
dedicate the time, effort and energy to their service will be welcomed and ultimately
successful throughout their time in Belize.

Please note that if selected to serve, you are expected to prepare your personal and
professional life to make a commitment to serve for the full 27 months. The June 2018 start
date of this program means that the Close of Service date will occur after the start of many
graduate school programs. Therefore, please consider carefully your post-Peace Corps plans
before applying to the program in Belize, as requests to close service prior to your Close of
Service date will not be approved for circumstances related to educational opportunities or
employment.

Required Skills
Qualified candidates will have an expressed interest in working in the health sector and one or
more of the following criteria:
Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science degree in any field
OR
5 years professional work experience

Desired Skills
Our most competitive candidates will meet one or more of the following criteria:
Master of Public Health degree or Master of Arts/Master of Science degree in Public Health
Certified Physician's Assistant or Public Health Nurse with expressed interest in
public/community health
Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition, Health, or Nursing

Additional desired skills for all candidates include:

Currently registered Nurse's (RN's) with a demonstrated interest in community health
preferred
Volunteer or work experience in promoting healthy lifestyles; health education; development
of nutrition and health education materials; maternal and child health (MCH), specifically
educating mothers on best practices in pre- and post-natal care; child nutritional health; non-
communicable disease (NCD), specifically knowledge of NCD risk factors, and developing and
implementing behavior change strategies within the maternal and child health and NCD health
sectors; organizing groups to address health concerns in under-served communities
Teaching or training experience is desirable
Motivated to live and work in rural communities
Background working with children and youth in schools and out
Willing to live under physical hardship if required
Comfort in working in a less structured environment and has demonstrated ability to take
great individual initiative

Required Language Skills

There are no pre-requisite language requirements for this position. Please take a moment to
explore the Language Comments section below to find out more on how local language(s) will
be utilized during service.

Additional Language Information

Although Belize is a small country, it has a rich and diverse ethnic, cultural, and language
environment. Trainees will be trained in one of three local languages: Kriol, Spanish, or Qechi.
Volunteers should be flexible and open to learning any one of the three languages required for
training. Trainees and Volunteers will be tested at intervals during Pre-Service Training (PST)
and at specific intervals during their service. Trainees will be required to meet the established
standards of the language(s) being taught during PST in order to be sworn in as a Volunteer.
Learning the local language is important and necessary to integrate and carry out health-
related work assignments as a Volunteer. Language is also critical for personal safety and
cultural integration purposes. Post will support a Volunteers language acquisition throughout
their service. Any prior Spanish knowledge and training can a benefit but is not a requirement.

Living Conditions

Belize is a tropical country with two seasons: Dry Season and Rainy Season. Please be aware
that Volunteers often work in hot and humid conditions with little or no access to air
conditioned facilities. Volunteers live and work in small rural communities that range in
population from 150 to 4,000 inhabitants. Some sites may have modern amenities but many
are remote and exhibit very limited, if any, modern comforts and conveniences. Many rural
villages do not have access to electricity, centralized water supplies, and public amenities that
are commonplace in larger towns in Belize. Volunteers may have to do laundry in rivers
(typical in rural Mayan Qeqchi sites). Many rural villages do not have indoor plumbing and rely
on outdoor latrines.

Communication with the U.S. can be a challenge for Volunteers. Rural sites are unlikely to have
easily accessible internet service, and phone coverage is not necessarily reliable. Travel
conditions can be rough both during Pre-Service Training and during a Volunteers service.
Many villages are accessed through dirt or uneven terrain prone to flooding during the rainy
season. Public transportation in some parts of Belize may require long travel hours. Bus
schedules can vary, and there are abbreviated schedules, especially on holidays.

Volunteers in Belize live with host families for the duration of their 27 month service, which
provides them with many benefits. For many Volunteers, living with a host family can be a
highlight of service, as it can help with cultural integration, language learning, building trust in
the community and increased safety and security. Many host families see Volunteers as
another member of the family, and the bonds that can be built could last a lifetime. It is
important to remember, however, that living with a host family will require an open mind,
cultural sensitivity, patience and great flexibility. It also means a loss of personal
independence, adhering to curfews and living in a home with either young or teenage children.
Volunteers may be exposed to methods of disciplining children different from what they are
accustomed to in the U.S. In many homes, especially in rural communities, gender roles are
well defined and different from that in the U.S. Volunteers are expected to be sensitive to
these differences. Volunteers will receive support from PC/Belize staff if gender-based
challenges arise.

Peace Corps Belize seeks to reflect the rich diversity of the U.S. and bring diverse perspectives
and solutions to development issues in Belize. Once Volunteers arrive at their sites, diversity
and inclusion principles remain the same but take on a different shape, in which your host
community may share a common culture and you are the outsider. You may be in the minority,
if not the sole American like you, at your site. During pre-service training, multiple sessions
and guidance will be provided to discuss diversity and inclusion. For more specific information
about serving as a Volunteer in Belize and the support networks in place, please visit
https://www.peacecorps.gov/belize/preparing-to-volunteer/diversity-and-inclusion/.

Volunteers should be flexible and willing to adapt to the local foods available, as some
vegetarians may encounter difficulties in maintaining a vegetarian diet. Volunteers should not
expect host families to cater foods outside of what is typically eaten in a Belizean home, and
many Volunteers find that the basic diet of Belizean families is sufficient. Volunteers with
visible body piercings or tattoos may need strategies to conceal them. In Belize, tattoos may
be associated with criminal activity. Likewise, having visible body piercings may make it more
difficult to integrate into your host community. Keep in mind that Peace Corps/Belize staff
 may ask you to be flexible with regard to personal appearance to facilitate integration in
training and during your service. Remaining flexible is the key to Peace Corps service in any
country.

Learn more about the Volunteer experience inBelize: Get detailed information on culture,
communications, housing, and safety including crime statistics [PDF] in order to make a
well-informed decision about serving.

Medical Considerations in Belize

Belize may not be able to support Volunteers with the following medical conditions:
requiring a psychiatrist for psychotropic medications support; ongoing counseling.

The following medication(s) are not permitted for legal or cultural reasons: Vyvanse.

Volunteers who should avoid the following food(s) may not be able to serve: none identified.

After arrival in Belize, Peace Corps provides and applicants are required to have an annual
flu shot, to take daily or weekly medication to prevent malaria, and to receive mandatory
immunizations.

Before you apply, please also review Important Medical Information for Applicants [PDF] to
learn about other health conditions typically not supported in Peace Corps service.

Does this sound like the position for you?

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