August 12, 2019 – Jimena CAS Summer Entry

CAS Journal Entry #47
Summer Break Entries

CAS: Regarding Service

As a result of COVID-19 and other factors, Julie and I have sort of deviated for a few months from the Proyecto Vida Mujer CAS project. Nonetheless, this summer we’ve been reached out personally by our mentor to help her with some logistics and data recollection for the project.

Therefore, for my service part of this summer, I have helped include information of past PVM campaigns into the system’s database so they have more control over the information provided to them in an online platform rather than on paper.

In addition, I also had to realize calls and realize a post-survey on women that had the IUD placed. Along with Julie, we created this system where we would make a group chat with all the women included and tell them to do the survey on their own at their own time so they would feel comfortable, and then we’d call the ones who didn’t do it or didn’t have WhatsApp.

Overall, the system was a success because most of the women are young and relatively technological so they were able to complete the post-survey with ease at their own discretion. We also didn’t want to bother with the calls because during times of COVID-19, answering a survey on their IUD is not a priority on some women or they don’t have the time, that’s why giving them the autonomy to complete this survey on their own allowed for more effectiveness.

I hope in the near future when Coronavirus cases have decreased or become obsolete, PVM could be able to do another campaign in which the public could benefit from in order to prevent unwanted pregnancies in these regions of Costa Rica.

Learning Outcomes:
• Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance: Both Coronavirus and women’s reproductive health are equally globally important, therefore, it’s important to adapt in order to acknowledge and raise awareness on both at the same time.
• Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences: Even though Julie and I haven’t been really active on this project for the past few months, we are still willing to help and improve this project as much as we can, therefore, showing our commitment to it.

IB Learner Profile:
• Caring: Even though these women have gotten their IUD 2 years ago, we’re still checking up on them and their emotional and mental well-being hoping that everything is going well and seeing if they need any help whatsoever whether it’s economically or professionally.
• Knowledgeable: This project has allowed me to grow as a person and have a solid idea and knowledge of how a copper IUD works, the side effects, and when to call a doctor. Many different women have contacted me personally or talked to me about their problems and I’ve tried to help them to the best of my ability from the little knowledge I have grasped with this project.