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| Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Event in NYC
| FIMRC
was one of three organizations highlighted for its recent achievements at an
event held by The Cushman Group at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney on April
21. The host of this annual event,
Robert Cushman, seeks to spread the word of cutting-edge non-profit practices
by providing a space for the founders of these industry-leading organizations
to speak on behalf of their mission.
FIMRC's founder and president, Vik Bakhru, and Vice President of Global
Operations, Meredith Mick, gave a highly educational and motivating
presentation to a packed room. Discussions of forming a New York City FIMRC
chapter for professionals and designing a Global Health Volunteer Outreach
Program for high school students are underway thanks to this opportunity.
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New FIMRC Website Launched
|  After
countless hours of brainstorming and relaying thoughts to a team of web
designers, our vision finally came to fruition on April 16 with the launch of
our new website. Team members across the
globe are extremely pleased with the end result. FIMRC has experienced a period of growth in
the last six months and in order to accommodate its reach, impact, and
credibility, revamping its image on the World Wide Web was necessary. These are exciting times for all
involved! We invite everyone to check it out by clicking on our logo. |
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Highlights from the Field: Combating Dengue One Fish at a Time, Project Las Delicias, El Salvador
| Field
Operations Manager Alex Kelly and a group of Global Health Volunteers from
Roger Williams University devised an integrated plan to combat the threat of dengue fever - fish. The most common
practice used to stunt the growth of larvae (which eventually grow to become
mosquitoes, carriers of the virus) is adding a chemical agent known as abate to a household's water
trough. While effective, families are
averse to using it because this water is consumed on a
daily basis. Fish, on the other hand,
provide a natural solution by feeding off of the larvae. Over 50 families in Las Delicias already use
this method.
Beneficiaries of this
project will eventually include every household in the community. The scope of the project includes setting up
hatcheries in each sector of the community so there will be a steady source of
fish and economic incentive to those taking on the responsibilities of
sustaining these efforts. Distribution
of the first batch of fish occurred in mid-May.
Monitoring of their effectiveness and further distribution will be
conducted in the upcoming months.
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Highlights from the Field: New Pediatrician Brought on to Project Kodaikanal, India
|  Thanks
to the services of Dr. Raju, Project Kodaikanal is excited to announce that
specialized pediatric care is now available to the créche children. Dr. Raju will work as a FIMRC consultant at
the Kodaikanal Health and Medical Services Center. Statistics show that around 50% of patients
suffer from an Upper Respiratory Infection (URI). The hope is that the additional support and
expertise
Dr. Raju brings to the project will lower the incidence rate and provide better
treatment for the ongoing issue. The
opportunity for volunteers to shadow Dr. Raju during his consultancy hours
brings added value to the Global Health Volunteer Program as well.
Prior to his current role as a FIMRC consultant, Dr. Raju worked in
various health care settings such as the government hospital and running his
own clinic. All of this experience
translates in to an in-depth knowledge of the Kodaikanal region and the health
challenges its population faces. By providing pediatric care, FIMRC takes a crucial step toward improving quality of life in this underserved community.
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Chaptership Highlights
| Over the past few months, we have had many chapters post a strong show of support for the mission of FIMRC. It is awe-inspiring to see so many people stand up for the cause. This year, there were many chapters that did outstanding work. Efforts included fundraising to support our clinics, promoting awareness about FIMRC and the global health needs facing children in the developing world, and sending volunteers on missions around the globe. We would like to make honorable mention of two chapters in particular.
Through various fundraising efforts and lots of hard work, the University of Michigan chapter was able to raise $9,000 to support programming in Latin America. An additional $2,500 was donated to support the Uganda Landslide Relief Project. Thank you, University of Michigan, for your incredible generosity! The University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign chapter was able to recruit a strong contingent of volunteers to travel to our project sites. A total of 34 volunteers have served in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Peru, and Uganda this year alone! A huge thanks goes out to all of our chapters who continue to support FIMRC.
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FIMRC Team Member Highlight: Elena Traverso
|  FIMRC
would like to recognize the outstanding efforts of Elena Traverso, Site
Coordinator in Huancayo for Project Peru.
The time Elena has dedicated to fostering the relationships with partner
organizations such as Kurame Essalud,
SBH, the Food Science Faculty of the Universidad
Nacional del Centro del Peru (UNCP), and the staff of the ICU at the Daniel
Alcides Carrion Hospital has resulted in many noteworthy initiatives. Examples include a secondhand clothes drive,
further development of a cooking and nutrition program, and a needs assessment,
respectively.
Another area of outstanding performance lies in the support Elena provides the Global Health Volunteer
Program. This is
evident in volunteer surveys and the abundance of positive feedback on
Elena's
behalf. It is bilateral
cooperation and proactive leadership that yields the diverse opportunities available to Global
Health Volunteers and Summer International Health Fellows, a program
celebrating its fourth anniversary.
Elena is a vital part of Project
Peru's overall success and we are grateful to have her as part of our team.
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