Outreach programs are meant to raise awareness among minorities and hard to reach communities about basic life skills, medical facilities and other resources.

1. Community Wellness and Outreach Program
Get your community aware of outreach programs
Outreach programs are meant to raise awareness among minorities and hard to reach
communities about basic life skills, medical facilities, and other resources. Some of the
important work that outreach programs do is:
Offering medical help
Many communities are unaware of the medical help available to them. Good outreach
programs help communities understand the need for medical health check-ups and use
many resources to help raise awareness. They conduct meetings and organize discussions as
well as more complicated programs like setting up free medical camps to help these
communities. They address all kinds of problems from teen pregnancy, AIDS to drugs and
alcoholism.
Raising awareness in the youth
The young men and women of a community are the future, and need to be aware of the
resources available to them. As the new generation gets educated, the quality of life for
their children will get better. Many outreach programs concentrate on reaching out to
youngsters and helping qualify themselves, as well as help them in finding employment. This
decreases a lot of social issues that pervade these communities and help them make a
change for the better.
These are just a couple of critical issues among many others that outreach programs do.

2. How do you ensure that your outreach program is helpful?
A good outreach program helps people help themselves. By offering charity and donation,
all that is being done is giving people what they need without them having to do anything
for it. Outreach programs do not believe in that. They believe in helping communities learn
to fend for themselves, and help them start improving the quality of their lives. To this end,
these programs should try and involve the members of the community. Some of the more
effective outreach programs execute some of the below tips when conducting outreach
programs.
Ask for volunteers
By making the people of the community volunteer to be part of the program, you will be
increasing their sense of responsibility. By interacting with other volunteers, they will gain
real insights into the program’s purpose, and this will help them trust the program and want
to participate in the other activities that the outreach program offers. By making them a
part of the program, word spreads through the community about the help being offered.
Activities for children
Parents all over the world love their children and want a better life for them. By having
programs that involve and educate children, you will find that there is more participation
from the community members. When the activity is free and is fun, you will find more
people bringing their children and participating in the programs.
Medical camps
Though they may be a bit wary of this in the beginning, most community members will soon
start visiting medical camps regularly. Most of these communities may not have seen a
doctor or visited a medical facility even once in their lives. If your outreach program is linked

3. to a medical facility where they can get free medical help, it would make a significant
difference in their lives.
Youth education
Have your youth activities in school campuses on holidays. Most teenagers are looking for
something to do on the day off, and by having activities on holidays it would help keep them
occupied. They may drop by the program centers to check it out, but if the activities are
interesting enough, some will stay.
The most important rules of outreach programs are consistency, patience, and
commitment. It may be a difficult job and sometimes downright frustrating, but remember
that if you make a difference in even one life it is all worth it.
Indian Health Center Of Santa Clara Valley
Community Wellness and Outreach Department
602 East Santa Clara Street, Suite 130 (First Floor)
San Jose, CA 95112
Phone: (408) 445-3400 x2660
Fax: (408) 998-0964
http://www.indianhealthcenter.org/