Socios En Salud (SES) through its program SES Volunteering gives the opportunity to young people and adults of various ages to be an international volunteer, challenging these people to get out of their comfort zone and experience the transformation of global health.
The fundamental characteristic of SES Volunteering is “solidarity in action”, by which the young volunteer relates to the reality where he/she works, and finds ways to deploy his/her skills and desires in wanting to transform it in search of the common good.
Victoria Oliva - Testimonial
“I am very grateful to Socios En Salud for having welcomed me and integrated me into their work team. The fact that I had the opportunity to work on an intervention and research focused on early stimulation of children with an international team gave me the ability to develop new skills and learn from a variety of perspectives.”
For Victoria collaborating with SES staff and working directly with families gave her the opportunity to learn about the reality and context of the families in Carabayllo. She felt part of a large team working in coordination to provide accompaniment and support to families in distressing situations of need.
“Sometimes it is easy to say that it is simple to help, but it is not. I learned that to give real and sustainable support we must do it as a team, with the community, with the authorities and the family.”
Over time, Victoria learned to see the reality in the field, with the families. I observe the complexities of putting theory into practice. Aspects of methodology so simple, but which in practice were complex. The experience with Socios En Salud was determinant for professional development.
“It opened my eyes to experience how difficult it can be to implement a community-based intervention in a new context.” However, the commitment and involvement of the community agents and SES staff made all the difference in her life.