Programs / Public Health / Communities / El Jute «

About El Jute

The community of El Jute has a population of 360 people living in 65 houses

in the municipality of Teupasentí. Prior to Global Brigades' arrival,

community members in El Jute suffered from a lack of proper water, hygiene

and sanitation infrastructure, healthcare, and education. Common colds,

parasites, and functioning latrines, proper water storage, or efficient stoves

with chimneys. Further complicating matters, the closest health center is

over an hour away. Similarly, the closest secondary school is in Teupasentí.

Thus, most children leave school after 6th grade and begin working in

agriculture to support their families. Community members harvest corn,

beans, and coffee. By selling their products, families earn roughly 1,750

Lempiras ($90.00) per month.

El Jute's Public Health Challenge

Many community members in El Jute lacked the resources needed

to improve their homes and prevent diseases caused by unsafe living

environments. The majority of homes are made of adobe, straw, and

mud and very few homes had hygiene stations, cement floors, and

eco-stoves prior to the arrival of Global Brigades. Such living conditions

triggered disease. The lack of hygiene stations led to high rates of

diarrhea and waterborne disease, the absence of cement floors caused

parasitic infection and Chagas Disease, and the lack of eco-stoves

resulted in respiratory problems in many community members. Not only

did the creation of health infrastructure better the health of household

members through improved sanitation and hygiene, but it also improves

their quality of life as the new water storage units will reduce time spent

walking to water sources and the eco-stove reduces firewood

consumption by about 70%.

Although community members recognized the problems inherent to their living environments, they did not have the economic resources nor the technical knowledge needed to address them. Moreover, the level of awareness concerning sanitation and the importance of health was very low as the children did not recieve any education about the topic.

The Public Health Solution for El Jute

Public Health Brigaders from several different universities and the Public Health Brigades in-country team worked in El Jute from February 2013 – June 2013. During this time, volunteers and staff members will work with community members to:
• Identify community leaders and train them to form the Basic Sanitation Committee

• Increase cultural sensitivity and awareness by working side by side with qualified masons and
project beneficiaries

• Build 58 eco-stoves, 59 latrines, 59 showers, 56 water storage units, and 130 cement floors

• Conduct educational workshops emphasizing the importance of sanitation and hygiene in the local
primary school

To ensure the sustainability of the in-home infrastructure projects, the Public Health Program provides continuous follow-up in the community. It also forms and trains the Basic Sanitation Committee, a community body formed by local leaders which monitors the correct usage and maintenance of the new infrastructure. Clear responsibilities and powers are assigned to each member, making the beneficiaries themselves an even stronger stakeholder in the Public Health projects.

The Public Health Solution for El Jute

Public Health Brigades Chapters that Worked in El Jute
Public Health Brigades Chapter	Month	Volunteers
Brandeis University	February 2013	15
Queen's College	February 2013	7
University of Victoria	February 2013	1
Mt. Allison University	February 2013	17
Pittsburgh Students	March 2013	11
University of Buffalo	March 2013	21
Indiana University	March 2013	13
UNC Chapel Hill	March 2013	20
Yale University	March 2013	6
University of Denver	March 2013	33
Tulane University	March 2013	15
Athletico	April 2013	25
University of Pittsburgh	May 2013	31
Acadia University	May 2013	48
University of Michigan	May 2013	23
Arizona State University	May 2013	25
Loyola University	May 2013	15
Midwestern University	May 2013	14
University of Missouri	May 2013	22
San Jose State University	May 2013	23
Stonybrook University	May 2013	16
University of Nottingham	May 2013	17
Illinois Wesleyan University	June 2013	11
UC Berkeley	June 2013	8
UC Santa Barbara	June 2013	18
UC Irvine	June 2013	28
UC Riverside	June 2013	12
UC Davis	June 2013	23

Current Status

Completed: June 2013

After numerous successful brigades, the Public Health Brigades Program exited the community of El Jute. Exiting the community signifies that the program no longer be brings brigades to this community and will gradually lessen follow-up to one visit every 6 months - 1 year. The Public Health Brigades program trusts that the community members will maintain their projects with the assistance of the trained masons and understand the importance of building safe living environments whenever they construct new homes.

Visit Other Programs in El Jute

Global Brigades strives to implement a model of Holistic Development in communities through a system of collectively implementing health, economic, and education initiatives to strategically meet a community's development goals. Learn more about the other programs being implemented in El Jute:

MedicalDentalEngineering MicrofinanceWater Business ArchitectureCHW