A More Positive Outlook

Last summer and at times during my first couple of weeks here, I had trouble dealing with the magnitude of working in HIV prevention and care. It's such a huge problem; how much difference can I really make and is that worth it? Those are big questions and don't have easy answers. But recently—mostly as a result of my field work—I have been feeling more optimistic about global health.

TANGIBLE RESULTS EXIST:

Our time at the office before our field visit consisted of reading up on FHI and HIV in Malawi. That was important to do and I certainly learned a lot doing so. But reading about how the U.S. government gives money to USAID, then USAID assigns funds to FHI, then FHI funds implementing partners that, in turn, fund programs seems like a chain of bureaucracy that could never, ever get things done. But I was too cynical.

One poignant moment at one implementing partner's vocational school: the director of the organization came in, picked up a small green school-uniform dress that was to be donated to an OVC and said, "This is FHI funding."

Sometimes the safety net of bureaucracy that is so necessary when dealing with donor money can feel constraining, but it was great to really see a tangible, final result. The funding from the U.S. government, funneled into USAID, then directed to FHI, then doled out to this particular implementing partner, is really making a difference in these people's lives.

And it was also interesting to finally learn first-hand that this currency-flow is not just siphoned off at every level. FHI management integrates models of collaboration, participation and results orientation into every phase of its program activities, offering all the implementing partners (and even the country office) opportunities to improve their services. FHI, as a result of this collaborative structure, also provides job opportunities and economic boosts to the communities in which it works.

THINK ABOUT IT IN CONTEXT:

There are inevitable challenges when you are facing as big a problem as the HIV/AIDS epidemic or trying to eradicate poverty. But one very wise woman told me that you just have to think about the obstacles in context. While we may deal with drafting grant proposals, writing reports and patiently wading through language barriers, we should always remember that our frustrations and difficulties are not even in the same league as those faced by the people we are trying to help. "It almost seems the frustrations are a little bit of payback," she told me. I'm inclined to agree.

FIND THE EXPATS:

As I sort of alluded to in my entry "The Tooth," I have learned a lot from expatriates and other veteran development volunteers. They are a source of inspiration for me. People who have spent lifetimes seeking to make the world better, just because they think it's the right thing to do, make me feel like I should do even more than I am doing, and encourage my work. They are all over the place here, and I can't wait to meet more of them.

Let's do it.