HIV/AIDS Work in Mexico with Projects Abroad

  Mexico

• Guadalajara: 
Guadalajara

Term: Throughout the year 
Durations of Program: 2-4 weeks, 5-8 weeks, 9-12 weeks, 3-6 months and 7-12 months
Typical Duration of Program: 9-12 weeks
Dates: Year-Round/Rolling-Starts

Description: Working on an HIV/AIDS project in Mexico is a great way to contribute to the local community while getting an in depth look at another culture. Situated around Guadalajara, the second largest city in Mexico, our international volunteers work at an AIDS center called PAIPID. Experiencing life in Mexico as a volunteer on an HIV/AIDS project will be intense, but is bound to be unforgettable.

Volunteer Opportunities Abroad Working on an HIV/AIDS Project in Guadalajara

You will be working at PAIPID (Proyecto para la Atencion de la Persona Inmuno Deprimida) in Tonala, a district of Guadalajara. PAIPID is a center providing professional care and counseling for people with HIV/AIDS and their families. In addition to modern medicine, the center offers alternative treatment such as herbal medications, physical therapy, and homeopathy. The center acts as a rehabilitation center where patients can temporarily live after undergoing treatment at other hospitals or home. Most patients are terminally ill and therefore permanent residents; small children who were tragically born with HIV and orphaned early on in life also live at PAIPID.

The center is a happy place to work, but the role can be very challenging and you need to be prepared for this.

PAIPID is headed by a council and is run by nuns who will be your primary contacts during your placement. You will also be assigned a supervisor that you will work with on a daily basis.

You may want to take a purely observational role at first, but as soon as you feel confident to take a more hands on approach, the local staff will give any assistance that you need. PAIPID is forty minutes away by bus from the Projects Abroad office in Guadalajara.

Volunteering Abroad in Mexico in an HIV/AIDS Center

The majority of work will be assisting residents at PAIPID. The patients can be any age from only a few months up to adulthood. Help is needed with feeding and washing patients, changing their diapers if necessary, keeping them company, and if they are children then playing with them. This multifaceted project will be challenging, but ultimately very rewarding for any volunteer who is up for it.

Highlights: Mexico is a beautiful country, and a great place to spend time on a volunteer program or internship. Mexico is a real meeting-place of cultures: a modern, industrialized and well-educated country that's full of history. American, Spanish and Indian influences all come together to make it a fascinating place that mixes developed and developing worlds. Mexico is a stimulating mixture of wealth and poverty, and offers amazing opportunities for volunteers to learn and travel within its expansive borders.

All accommodation is organized, paid for and monitored by Projects Abroad. All project placements are regularly visited and checked. We require high standards of supervision and accommodation, which are verified before you arrive in Mexico.

This project offers the opportunity to become fully immersed in the culture in a manner which even the most hardened of backpackers could never hope to do.

Qualifications: none

Cost in US$: From US$2,695 Up

Experience Required: no

Typical Volunteer: Open-minded with a willingness to travel.

Age Range: 16-80

This Program is open to South African Participants. This Program is also open to Families, Couples and Individuals

Participants Travel to Mexico Independently

Typically Participants Work Independently Or in Groups of 2-5

Application Process Involves:

• Letters of Reference
• Online Application plus Application Assessment

Post Services Include:

• Alumni Network
• Exit DebriefingAbroad
• Re-Entry Debriefing at Home

Projects Abroad's Mission Statement: As part of the global economy, Projects Abroad helps create local employment wherever we send volunteers. Employing local staff overseas and using their talents and knowledge is important to us. This local knowledge and support enables the organization to channel the skills of the volunteers from more affluent countries to regions around the world where they are needed. Volunteers also learn from their placements and the people they meet, and they gain experience in a chosen field. In the 21st century, we believe this mutual respect is what cultural exchange is all about.

Year Founded: 1992