“More Than A Bandage”

Community and Family Health Program

Twice a year the GYTTE program staff hosts continuing education events  for the women trained as community-based, primary health workers.   Each spring semester,  regional meetings are held in four or five different communities and the women travel to the one closest to their home.   In the fall a general meeting is held where the health workers can all meet together.  December 1st, more than 50 health workers gathered at the Church of the Good Shepherd in the City of Puebla.

The fall meeting began with a devotion lead by GYTTE Program Administrator, Mirna Mendoza.
The interactive devotion in which everyone took part, ended in prayer as together we remembered the difficult situation into which Christ was born and the wonderful reason He came - to save us from the darkness of sin!
The subject that GYTTE Nurse and Health Program Coordinator, Veronica Palacios, prepared for the health workers was osteoporosis.  This is something that very few villagers know about and yet there are many who suffer from it.  Thus this was a good subject to choose so the health workers can share this information.
	At these biannual meetings Veronica resupplies the first aid kits of the health workers so they can continue to serve the health care needs of people in their communities.  These supplies come from a number of conferences, churches and individuals in the USA.  What a gift!
Each semester we celebrate the birthdays of the health workers for those six months.  For most all the women this is the only time (in their life) that they’ve had their birthday celebrated.  And, of course, there is cake and a gift for each birthday gal.
	When the fall meeting is close to Christmas, we offer a craft time during the day’s meeting.  This time it was a wooden frame that they painted and decorated with colored buttons.  Clara, the GYTTE computer guru and bilingual secretary, shot a picture of each of the women as they arrived and printed them up, so they would have a photo for their picture frame.  This is special considering very few own a camera.

**For more photographs of the gathering you can go to our Facebook page: Muriel Henderson