This is really out of touch with the realities of volunteers' lives here in Vanuatu. I live on a really tiny island and last year, when a woman in my village had a miscarriage, there wasn't a single pad on the entire island for her to use for her bleeding. This sort of thing happens in Vanuatu. Tampons are not available at all outside of Vila and Luganville, and you can't expect to buy pads, due to the nature of shipping. (Sometimes your store might have them and sometimes it might not, but as a woman, you're going to need them one week a month, every month. Everything comes out of Vila and maybe it'll make it out to you and maybe it won't. Maybe your ship will run and maybe you'll get a ship every few months.) Urban volunteers can probably buy their own menstrual supplies (at 10$ a pop) but volunteers in the bush can't just go to the store and buy a pack of tampons when they need them.
Especially at a time when DC seems to be trying to say that they're really supportive of volunteers, this seems tone deaf. I don't think DC wants us to be using cloth or leaves instead of Kotex, but they're not they're not thinking about the situation on the ground, here in Vanuatu. I'm sure in Thailand or Nicaragua or Moldova, volunteers can go to the store and buy their own tampons and it's not an issue, but I don't live in Thailand or Nicaragua or Moldova.
Here's the email I got from the quality nurse. I really think that she just doesn't get it. Vanuatu is not like other countries; this stuff isn't available everywhere. Tampons, pads, and diva cups are a basic need, unlike moisturizing lotion.
Dear Ms. Russell,
While we do appreciate your concerns; the Office of Health Services cannot supply non-medical supplies to Volunteers. Below you will find the email that we are sending to Vanuatu Volunteers explaining the policy. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have further questions.
Best,
Geri
The Office of Health Services (OHS) is authorized to provide medical supplies; toiletries, such as shampoo, moisturizing lotion, toothpaste/brushes, deodorant , tampons/pads/diva cups are not considered core health items and should not be provided by the health unit. We can appreciate that personal supplies may be difficult to obtain in Vanuatu and that you are living isolated lives without many services or comforts. While the policy not to provide toiletries may seem insensitive to your particular situations, our mission is to provide health services. This decision was not made without careful research and input from Volunteers, and staff alike; both in the field, at post and at HQ. An intense yearlong study of OHS policy regarding medical supplies and inventory conducted by the Peace Corps Leadership Development Academy (LDA) concluded that valuable OHS resources (which in addition to funds, includes the time that PCMOs spend on filling orders for non-medical supplies) were being allocated to non-clinical/medical supplies and duties. Peace Corps leadership accepted these recommendations in an attempt to keep finite funds available to provide the medical coverage that you refer to in your email and to free up the PCMOs to provide healthcare. Every hour that a PCMO spends filling orders for non-medical supplies is an hour away from patient care.
Volunteer concerns, opinions and requests are respected, reviewed, researched and presented to administration for determination as appropriate. We are truly grateful to each of you for choosing to serve your country and the peoples of Vanuatu!
Nothing is more important to the Peace Corps than our volunteers, and though we can never fully overcome all the inherent challenges of providing health services abroad, we must do all we can to preserve precious resources for those times when those services are needed.
Warmest Regards,
Geri
http://lynn9021ineurope.wordpress.com/2014/07/27/sick-of-our-sick-moon/
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