Pine Manor College offers a course in Introduction to Community Healthcare each fall as part of the College’s certificate program in Community Healthcare Outreach. The course examines fundamental concepts in the field of community health, including epidemiology, health education/ promotion, community organizing, the health of minorities and immigrants, and issues such as substance abuse, homelessness, and domestic violence.
In addition, the course has a component of international health, which addresses how public health needs are met in countries where resources are scarce, focusing heavily on community involvement to solve problems. Several guest speakers have been invited to share their expertise in fields such as proposal writing for funding community health projects; Liberation Theology and its impact on health in developing countries; homelessness, substance abuse, and mental health; and community services for underserved urban communities.
October 5: Joel Montague, Founder and President Emeritus of Partners for Development, whose mission is to work with “vulnerable and underserved populations in developing countries.” Mr. Montague has spent his career working in developing countries, most recently in Cambodia and Tajikistan in maternal/child health programs. During his talk on International Health: Proposals and Funding Guidelines, Mr. Montague shared his expertise in developing public health-related proposals for funding and stressed the importance of involving local people in needs assessment, program design, and project implementation.
www.pfd.org
October 26: Edward Cardoza, Director of Development for Partners in Health, Boston, came to talk about Liberation Theology and its Impact on the Work on PIH in Haiti. During his presentation, Mr. Cardoza talked about the current health and economic situation of Haiti and gave the students a clear picture of how PIH meets its mission to bring modern medical care to those most in need. Mr. Cardoza described Liberation Theology as a call observe, judge, and act. He added that it is not enough to do charity work, but that “it is fundamental to us, as a people, to pay attention to the poor, the oppressed, and to those most in need.” The mission of PIH is “both medical and moral, and is based on solidarity, rather than charity alone”. The founder of PIH is Dr. Paul Farmer, whose work in Haiti, Peru, and Siberia is chronicled in the current best seller, Mountains beyond Mountains.
www.pih.org
November 7: Gail Hall, Administrative Coordinator at New England Research Institutes (NERI), Watertown, MA, will come to speak about Homelessness, Substance Abuse, and Mental Health. NERI does public health research “to creatively investigate many disciplines with the goal of understanding diseases, associated behaviors, and the effectiveness of treatment options.” Ms. Hall consults regularly with managerial and decision-making people from a variety of projects, which include Substance Abuse Cost, Access, and Treatment and National Technical Assistance for Chronic Homelessness. Ms. Hall has also consulted for the Massachusetts Correctional Legal Services. She was recently honored with an award from the Public Voice Project of City Mission Society for notable achievements in educating the public in criminal justice reform.
www.neriscience.org
November 21: Rev. June Cooper, Executive Director of City Mission Society, Boston will talk about Reaching Out to Underserved, Urban Communities. The mission of CMS is “to strive to unite churches, other religious communities, organizations and disadvantaged and privileged individuals in Metropolitan Boston in the struggle for justice and peace for all people.” Founded in 1816, CMS is the second oldest multi-service agency in the country. Prior to her call to the ministry, Rev. Cooper most recently served as president of Cooper and Associates, a Boston-based firm that specializes in organizational development and planning for health and human service organizations and governmental agencies. June has also worked for the Boston Public Health Commission, the Medical Foundation, Digital Equipment Corporation, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. She has held academic appointments at Boston College School of Social Work, Boston University School of Social Work, and Andover Newton Theological School.
www.cmsboston.org
