Building Leaders

Project

HERproject maximizes opportunities for women’s empowerment and leadership development by creating health ambassadors within the workplace and the community. From India to Mexico, HERproject peer educators develop communication and leadership skills, and they use those skills to share their knowledge with their co-workers, with their communities, and with their families.

Profile

A 30-year-old woman with a 13-year- old son and an 11-year-old daughter, Gowramma Nagesh and her husband, who works in a potato-chip factory, live in Bangalore, India, where they migrated for financial reasons. Previously, they were farmers in a village 75 kilometers away. Now, Nagesh lives closer to the factory where she works.

Based on her strong communications skills, Nagesh’s managers recommended that she become a peer educator. In an interview with St. Johns Medical College’s Dr. Deepthi Shanbhag, Nagesh explained that the HERproject program has helped her take on many roles in the factory and in her community:

Teacher

Nagesh gained the confidence to speak to groups and answer questions about women’s health. She developed her own techniques to teach more effectively, including using simple language and repeating key messages in different ways to reinforce them.

Counselor

Nagesh regularly counsels co-workers and women in her neighborhood about reproductive health issues, such as family planning. One woman she advised was apprehensive about using contraception. However, after taking Nagesh’s recommendation, she and her husband are now using contraceptives successfully and happily.

Community “Nurse"

Nagesh’s co-workers and neighbors regularly seek her assistance in answering health questions, and they often ask her to accompany them on trips to the hospital or clinic. Occasionally, Nagesh helps neighbors administer medicines or doctor-recommended care.

Problem-Solver

Nagesh is known as a resource in the factory by many co-workers. For example, when the ladies’ room workers asked her about the proper disposal of sanitary napkins, Nagesh gave a health presentation to the factory cleaners to help them address the issue.

Nagesh has also made changes to improve her health and the health of her family. For example, she knows the importance of taking a child to the doctor right away, she has improved her own menstrual hygiene (and has helped family members do the same), she is eating more fresh vegetables, and she has started a regimen of ergonomic exercises.

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