Background: Peace Corps is a US government volunteer service agency which provides trained Volunteers to assist host countries in addressing critical development challenges at the community level. The US President's Malaria Initiative provides technical expertise and financial resources to reduce malaria morbidity and mortality in focus countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
Objective: We aim to describe the nature of the collaboration between Peace Corps and President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) and highlight examples of the partnership in select countries.
Trop Dis Travel Med Vaccines
March 2019
Background: Gastrointestinal (GI) illness is the most commonly reported health concern among Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) serving in Guatemala. This project identified water types and treatment and storage practices used by PCVs and measured select water quality parameters in their household water.
Methods: A survey about water types and practices was conducted of PCVs in Guatemala.
Background: A primary reason for non-adherence to malaria chemoprophylaxis is fear of latent side effects. We examined latent effects of malaria chemoprophylaxis among Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs).
Methods: During July 18-September 16, 2016, RPCVs who served during 1995-2014 with an e-mail address in Peace Corps' RPCV database were invited to take an internet-based survey on malaria prophylaxis and medical diagnoses.
Introduction: Road traffic injuries are a leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Travellers are at risk given unfamiliarity with local road conditions and traffic rules. Peace Corps Volunteers are a unique population of long-term travellers who live and work in-country, often in remote settings, over a period of 27 months and use a range of transportation modes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHealthy People 2020 (HP2020) provides a set of quantifiable objectives for improving the health and well-being of Americans. This study examines Peace Corps Volunteers' health metrics in comparison with the Leading Health Indicators (LHIs) in order to set baseline measures for Volunteers' health care and align our measurements with Healthy People 2020 standards. Health data from multiple internal Peace Corps datasets were compared with relevant LHIs and analyzed using descriptive statistics.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Dengue is an arboviral disease estimated to cause 50-100 million infections each year in >100 tropical and subtropical countries. Urbanization, human population growth and expanded global travel have resulted in an increase in the incidence of dengue worldwide. International travellers to areas with endemic dengue are at risk of contracting dengue and US Peace Corps Volunteers are one specific group of long-term travellers who are exposed to environments where dengue can be contracted.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Risk of tuberculosis (TB) is generally considered to be low for long-term travellers, though risk varies with travel destination, duration and purpose. Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) serve for 27 months as community-level development workers in various countries around the world and may be exposed to TB in the course of their service. This study examines recent trends in TB in PCVs and compares rates with a previous analysis published by Jung and Banks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To summarise survey results for the quality of medical students' personal health care, characterise the results according to the demographics and career orientations of the students, and evaluate the relationship between the perceived quality of health care received and the degree of emphasis on prevention in the health care provided.
Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional study with 2316 medical students in the class of 2003 from 16 medical schools, surveyed at 3 points during their training. We used a self-administered questionnaire designed to assess personal health care and related variables in medical students.
Objectives: To assess older urban women's knowledge about sexual transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and to evaluate the relationship between their HIV/AIDS knowledge level and sources of information.
Design: Cross-sectional survey conducted between June 2001 and July 2002. Trained research assistants administered a questionnaire in a face-to-face interview.