EPES

So. During orientation back in mid-June, when it became clear how little hands-on public health experience we were going to have, the group voiced their discontent. As a result, IES did what they could with limited time to give us a little more. One of the results of this effort was a full day with EPES (Educacíon Popular en Salud), an NGO that helps communities set their own goals to improve the neighborhood's health. We came in in the morning and we spent the morning learning all about EPES's role in Santiago and how they are growing. They hold classes/workshops for groups of women in a neighborhood (usually a very, very poor neighborhood), and these women brainstorm and discover what they can contribute to help their community, focusing on a few health programs. Something that is popular with all of these groups is mural-painting. This is an example of one such mural.

After lunch, we all went down to an area called La Bandera, and met with a group of women who call themselves Llareta. We talked a little bit about wha tthe group does, and what kind of planning goes into painting a mural, and then we headed out for a short tour of the neighborhood, ending on a faded mural (about getting a mammography so you don't get breast cancer and die) we were going to touch up. Here's the before shot:

While we painted, we got a real sense of how trusted EPES is in these communities, which is probably the key to their success. Lots of people stopped to see what they were doing and leave us kind words. One man even stopped to let us know that he wanted to offer up the wall outside his property to be painted. It was a really cool feeling, like we were doing something that ever so slightly was contributing to public health in Santiago. Here we are brightening it up. I had a monopoly over the green paint.

Later that night, a few of us met up. As we were indecisively trying to choose a direction in which to walk outside the metra station, we had a man come up to us. He asked us if we were on Providencia, which we were able to say we were. Then he asked us where Liguria Restaurant was, to which we were able to direct him. WE ARE LIKE LOCALS. We were awfully proud of ourselves. As we were squealing, however, we were all only faintly aware of a man and woman talking just behind us. But we paid no notice, until he grabbed something and took off running. She protested and seemed pretty shocked and took off after him in her wedge-heeled boots. But they know each other right? I think they had been talking right? But he's still running. And now three guys have taken off after them to try to help? And then they turned a corner and we realized a mugging had literally just happened right under our noses. We think he asked her for directions or something, before snatching her purse and setting off running. Eek. But we also realized we were more prepared, with our backpacks and cross-shoulder bags. It's like we're SMART locals.