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Educational Seminars:
The seminars provided by JHI mission participants at the Institute of Social and Communal Workers are an integral part of the mission. Lectures are presented at a two-day Seminar for physicians, and a one-day Seminar for "Gmilus Hesed" Home Care Workers. In addition, most mission participants will also have the opportunity to give additional lectures at non-Jewish medical institutions that collaborate regularly with Hesed and at the local medical or nursing schools.

At the two-day seminar, JHI brings in South Ukraine Hesed Medical Program Chiefs, Hesed Volunteer Doctors of the medical specialty being presented, and also invites local doctors form the general community in that specialty. Each mission participant will present one or two 90-minute lectures per day. The goal of the seminar is to enhance the professional level of healthcare specialists by providing modern and interesting information to local healthcare professionals. These lectures serve as advanced training to practicing physicians (i.e.: continuing medical education) and therefore lectures should be at an advanced level. Those attending the conference are highly trained medical professionals who are considered experts in their fields.

At the one-day of Seminar for "Gmilus Hesed" Homecare Workers, each JHI mission participant presents one 90-minute lecture. Homecare workers are volunteers or low-paid workers with varying degrees of medical background and no medical authority. Some are retired nurses, with extensive medical training, and others are general community members who want help those in need. Most are well educated in general, but not specifically in medical issues. They are not trained or authorized to make any medical decisions or diagnoses, however, they do report any medical problems that they observe to the homecare coordinator in the Hesed. Their primary work is to care for homebound Hesed clients, making both medical and social visits that include help with food-preparation and basic hygiene. Most of the homebound clients are elderly, and have some physical disability that makes it difficult for them to leave their homes. Some of the clients also suffer from mental disabilities. Lectures to these workers are on a basic level, and provide information on how homecare workers can help improve the quality of life of the homebound.

Depending on the medical specialty and timing of the mission, JHI mission participants sometimes give additional lectures at non-Jewish medical institutions that collaborate regularly with Hesed and at the local medical and nursing schools. Gauging the level of knowledge and expertise of the seminar attendees is often difficult. Most past mission participants have found that it is better to prepare at a higher level, and then depending on the reaction of the audience, simplify the materials as necessary. This is an opportunity for the local healthcare professionals and homecare workers to be exposed to materials otherwise unavailable in the country. While preparing lectures, mission participants are encouraged to contact past participants from JHI missions, to discuss local conditions and medical training at site (contact information of past mission participants is provided in the orientation packet).

All lectures are translated by local translators, and therefore, each 90-minute lecture involves about 45-60 minutes worth of material presentation, and 30-45 minutes of translation time. Lecture topics are proposed both by the Institute and by the mission participants themselves, and the final lecture schedule is coordinated by the JHI Coordinator in Odessa. Slide projectors, overhead projectors and PowerPoint projectors can be provided at most sites, and mission participants communicate directly with the local JHI Coordinator to ensure that the necessary equipment is available. Mission participants are also asked to prepare an abstract for each lecture. The abstract should be a detailed one-page summary of the content of each lecture, including key-points and key terms used. This should be similar to an abstract that you would write about a journal article, book chapter or lecture. Translators need two to three weeks to review the materials before hand and prepare all necessary vocabulary. Handouts, PowerPoint slides and other written materials may be translated before the mission and copied for distribution. Many internet resources are available to aid in lecture preparation. MD Consult is a website that allows you to access medical texts online and search these texts to find fast answers to all your questions. You can subscribe, for a fee at http://home.mdconsult.com or, register at the www.merckmedicus.com site, and you can link to MD Consult for free.

Patient Care:
Over the past year, Odessa has requested, and JHI has sent, specialists in the following areas: Dentistry, Ophthalmology, Geriatrics, Urology, Family Medicine, Nursing, Cardiology, Radiology, Endocrinology, Pediatrics, Internal (General) Medicine, Psychiatry, Rehabilitation, Gastroenterology, ENT, Neurology, Gynecology, Oncology, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, and Physiatry. Hesed volunteer doctors present diagnostically complicated cases to JHI mission participants. These "second opinion consultations" can take place at the Hesed Welfare Center, during home visits to bed-ridden patients, and during "rounds" at visits to local cooperating medical institutions. JHI participants also work with the Hesed volunteers and social-care workers who care for homebound patients. Most of the patients are elderly Hesed clients and children in the Jewish orphanages. JHI mission participants also consult and screen patients at the Eye Microsurgery Center (all consultations and operations in the Center are free of charge for Hesed clients). Most recently, JHI has begun a collaborative effort with the Odessa State Nursing School and the dental school.

Drug and equipment donations:
In Odessa, there is currently an extreme lack of drugs and equipment in local hospitals. JHI seeks the donation of certain medication and equipment from individual donors (including mission participants) as well as large pharmaceutical companies. The donations are distributed between the Hesed Medical Center and local cooperating institutions, such as the Eye Microsurgery Center, several city hospitals, and dental polyclinics.

Jewish Renewal:
Finally, it is a goal of JHI missions to show participants a wide picture of Jewish renewal in Odessa. This includes visits to the Jewish section of the city, "Gmilus Hesed" Jewish Welfare center, visits to "warm houses," synagogues, Jewish High schools, Jewish Orphanages, the JCC "Migdal," JCC "Moria", and the Holocaust memorial. In addition, mission participants participate in a Kabbalat Shabbat with Hesed staff and volunteers.