Public Outreaches

Our chairperson demonstrated the female condom to a local women's group.

Our PSI program has two components: condom distribution and education, and public outreach education.

We have a penis model in the office and are happy to demonstrate proper use and disposal to anyone who asks. We have a lot of fun with this in the office and it’s pleasantly surprising how open most people are in talking about condom use.

A local celebrity does a bit of guest speaking at one of our outreaches.

Although one-on-one teaching in the office is important, we want to reach as many people as possible so the other component of the PSI project is public outreach education. Volunteers in go out to schools, churches, tea factories, women’s groups, clinics, etc. and give talks on self efficacy in condom use and mpango wa kando (a Swahili term meaning “a little something on the side”). In essence this refers to cheating on one’s spouse which is a big issue in preventing the spread of HIV/AIDS in a society that has a very recent history of polygamy.

We give 20 talks in the community each month and each one focuses on facilitating healthy behavior change. These talks vary from informal small groups as people wait to see the nurse at the clinic to presentations with video for several hundred students at a school.