INMED Andes recognized by UNFPA for work with Peruvian youth

INMED is proud to be included in a recent fact sheet released by UNFPA Peru, recognizing INMED Andes’ partnership in addressing adolescent health in indigenous communities in the Ucayali region as part of the 2012-2016 Regional Youth Plan.

Based on strong performance delivering other reproductive health education programming in the region, INMED was selected as a partner to directly deliver adolescent health activities in indigenous communities. INMED is implementing programs focused on the intercultural health issues between the Shipibo-Conibo and Ashaninka communities and the central health system, including gender violence, sexual and reproductive health, and adolescent issues focused on health and human rights. Local INMED staff are working with youth and families in their native languages to integrate modern life-saving healthcare with traditional practices and beliefs, impacting more than 15,200 adolescents and 1,200 other women of reproductive age.

The fact sheet, The Young People in Ucayali, points to the necessity of INMED’s programs in the region:

• 25% of the population in Ucayali are young people between ages 15-29, and 24% of them are poor.
• 27% of women in the region are pregnant before age 20, compared to 13% across the rest of the country.
• 1 in 3 women between ages 15-29 have been victims of physical or sexual violence in a past relationship.

A digital version of the fact sheet is available for download in Spanish at the UNFPA Peru website: www.unfpa.org.pe/juventuducayali

About UNFPA

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is the world's largest multilateral source of funding for population and reproductive health programs. The Fund works with governments and non-governmental organizations in over 150 countries with the support of the international community, supporting programs that help women, men and young people and delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.

INMED Launches Adolescent Reproductive Health Initiative in Jamaica

On April 10, leaders from Jamaica’s Ministries of Health and Education, the mayor of Trelawny, and a representative of MSD (Merck) in the Caribbean joined INMED to formally launch the new Community Health Awareness for Adolescent Reproductive and Maternal Care (CHAARM) program at Falmouth Hospital in Trelawny, Jamaica.
INMED's youth health aides are reaching out to their peers in Trelawny to promote resproductive health and positive choices.
The CHAARM project, implemented by INMED with support from the Merck for Mothers program, will raise awareness of critical adolescent maternal and reproductive health issues and increase access to care among high-risk youth in Trelawny Parish, which has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the country.

“More than one in every four births in Trelawny are to teens, and yet adolescent pregnancy remains associated with such stigma in Jamaica that more than half of pregnant teens do not seek early prenatal care, putting them and their babies at risk for complications,” says INMED President Dr. Linda Pfeiffer. “Through the CHAARM program, we can reach both male and female adolescents with relevant, judgment-free education on a wide range of reproductive health issues to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, and link them to vital health services when they need them most.”

Trained youth health aides will carry out community-based outreach, education and a mobile health campaign, disseminating information as the first line of defense in preventing high-risk teenage pregnancies and ultimately adolescent maternal mortality. The health aides will serve as the entry point into communities, churches and schools for communicating information based upon national priorities and approved curricula to reach a large number of pregnant and non-pregnant teenage youth, as well as parents and community members, in order to dispel myths and overcome stigmas associated with teenage sexual activity and pregnancy.

Western Regional Health Authority Medical Officer Dr. Lisa Wisdom shares her perspectives on the importance of the program for Trelawny's youth, while other speakers and dignitaries look on. From left are Trelawny Mayor Garth Wilkinson, Senior Education Officer Allison Cooke-Hawthorne, CHAARM Project Coordinator Venisha Brown, MSD Policy and Communications Director Vanessa Lugo, Dr. Wisdom, and INMED President and CEO Dr. Linda Pfeiffer.