Ivco 2007 Amigos

Health and Safety Protocols for International Volunteer and Educational Programs Glenn Bayron, MSW Director of Volunteer Administration Amigos de las Americas (AMIGOS) IVCO Conference Global Citizenship and Effective Aid Montreal, Quebec, Canada September 19, 2007

Amigos de las Americas 5618 Star Lane Houston, Texas 77057 United States of America [email protected] www.amigoslink.org

Agenda ƒ Objectives ƒ Areas of Focus ƒ Assumptions ƒ Pre-departure Protocols ƒ In-Country Protocols ƒ Post-Experience Protocols ƒ Staffing and Recommended Resources ƒ Documentation ƒ Sources for Standards and Best Practices ƒ Share Experiences/Q&A

Objectives ƒ Promote and re-affirm standards and best practices in the area of health and safety ƒ Highlight the types of situations and conditions IVCOs for which protocols should be in place to address. ƒ Recommend staffing and local resource requirements. ƒ Establish the importance of documentation ƒ Link participants with sample documents and protocols that can be replicated and/or modified for implementation among other IVCOs ƒ Provide contact information for web resources for additional guidance on developing standards and best practices

Areas of Focus ƒ Communications, Responses, and Documentation ƒ Medical (Prevention, Treatment, Followup) ƒ Mental Health/Cultural Adjustment ƒ Host Family (Screening and Problemsolving) ƒ Community (Screening and Problemsolving) ƒ Conduct Infractions among Volunteers ƒ Assaults (Physical, Criminal, Sexual) ƒ Natural Disasters ƒ Political Upheavals

Assumptions ƒ IVCOs view the health and safety of their volunteers as their highest priority, above all other aspects of their work. ƒ IVCOs have health and safety protocols in place currently. ƒ IVCOs have sufficient resources both material and otherwise to address the health and safety issues of their volunteers. ƒ IVCOs are transparent and proactive in how the communicate their health and safety protocols to their various constituents (prospective and current volunteers, family members, and incountry partners, general public). ƒ Specific protocols for volunteers under age of majority are in place.

Pre-Departure Protocols ƒ Promotional and application materials reflect commitment to health and safety. International short term medical insurance is required. ƒ Volunteer training contains a thorough health and safety module that focuses on disease prevention and health maintenance. ƒ Application for participation includes a medical/mental health history section that documents entire history, including chronic illnesses, allergies, medications, special conditions, as well as health provider clearance. ƒ Minimum medical/mental health criteria for screening purposes are in place. Laws protecting people with disabilities are observed to the fullest extent possible. ƒ Immunization requirements are based on WHO/CDC recommendations and are country and/or region-specific. ƒ Emergency, health, and safety protocols are communicated to volunteer family members.

Pre-Departure Protocols (cont.) ƒ Standards of personal conduct and consequences for infractions are explicit. ƒ FAQ information is available to general public ƒ In-Country staff have identified, evaluated and secured agreements with medical and mental health facilities and professionals. ƒ MOI with partner agencies regarding responses to natural disasters and political upheavals have been established. ƒ Embassies and consulates are aware of program, communities, and other aspects of the IVCOs presence in the country. ƒ Host families and communities have been appropriately screened.

In-Country Protocols ƒ IVCO maintains a 24-hour Emergency Communications System operated out of home office. ƒ All volunteers are registered with their embassies and consulates. ƒ Health and Safety Protocols are reviewed during in-country orientation. ƒ Mechanisms to document all types of situations exist (medical, etc.) ƒ All volunteers are given written instructions on what to do if… ƒ All volunteer communities are accessible via phone and/or car with minimum standards for acceptability. ƒ Illnesses are effectively treated and documented.

In-Country Protocols ƒ Follow-up is provided to insure recovery ƒ To the extent possible, the best available medical care is provided to volunteers. ƒ Emergency response protocols are in place for natural disasters, political disturbances, as well as interruptions in transportation and communications. ƒ Mechanisms are in place to communicate serious issues to family members in sending-countries. ƒ Protocols to respond to assaults are in place and volunteers are afforded maximum flexibility in terms of privacy, confidentiality, and prosecution. ƒ Mechanisms to address problems with host families and communities are in place.

Post-Experience Protocols ƒ Follow-up to any serious issues is provided to volunteers/families. ƒ Volunteers are given the opportunity to provide feedback to IVCO on protocols. ƒ Mechanisms to address lessons learned are in place (Continuous Quality Improvement) ƒ Changes to countries served, programs, host communities, host families, and service providers are made based on experiences.

Staffing and Recommended Resources ƒ In-country staff are fully trained and equipped with the necessary resources to address all types of health and safety issues discussed. ƒ Local support resources (medical, mental health, partner agency, local authorities, etc.) are clear and in agreement about expectations and divisions of responsibility. IVCO is confident in the ability of these resources to take a “customer-service” approach to responding to the needs of the volunteers. ƒ Relevant embassies and consulates are fully informed of the IVCOs operations and personnel, as well as volunteer participants. In matters of natural disasters or political problems they are directly involved in providing support.

Documentation ƒ Forms exist to document all the issues/scenarios described ƒ An interactive database is used to capture and report information related to the issues discussed, both for individual volunteers and in aggregate form. ƒ A statistical analysis of health and safety issues is conducted and provided to the IVCO’s stakeholders and constituents, as well as the general public upon request. ƒ Professional guidance and minimum standards for documenting cases are provided to responsible personnel.

Sources of Standards and Best Practices ƒ Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET) www.csiet.org ƒ International Volunteer Programs Association (IVPA) www.volunteerinternational.org ƒ World Health Organization www.who.org ƒ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov ƒ Amigos de las Americas www.amigoslink.org

ƒ Share Experiences ƒ Q&A ƒ Thank You!