The Situation
More than 50 percent of Buenos Aires’ population lives below the poverty line. Health care has become inaccessible for many residents, and education about good health and well-being is in great demand. Most people in the city’s slums do not receive even basic health care, much less preventative care and health education.

What’s Being Done
The goal of the Health and Wellness Program is to take an active role in helping people who are living below the poverty line. The first step is to ensure that the basic needs of every child are being met (i.e., food, clothing, and shelter). The second step is to educate people from economically disadvantaged areas on how to lead healthy lifestyles and care for themselves and their children.

What You Can Do
Volunteers with our Health and Wellness Program are directly involved in educating children, teens and adults about important health issues that directly affect their quality of life. As a volunteer in Buenos Aires, you will work directly with local men, women and children, helping organize educational talks and screening/counseling booths in community centers, soup kitchens, and even in people’s homes or in outdoor plazas. If you have the desire and experience, you may also be able to provide treatment or administer medications if necessary. Doctors, nurses, and dentists are encouraged to participate in this program.

Airport Pickup and Orientation:
After arrival in Buenos Aires, you will be picked up by a shuttle service and transported to your host family for the first night. The following morning, you will begin your Volunteer Adventure with an extensive orientation. During this time, you will learn about living and working in Buenos Aires, using public transportation, and volunteering at your project site. You will meet your project coordinator to discuss the details of your work and your responsibilities as a volunteer. Your project coordinator will accompany you on the first day and also on subsequent days if possible.


Transportation:
Volunteer Adventures will arrange your airport pickup in Buenos Aires and transportation to your host family. Volunteers pay for transportation to and from the project and other activities.
Language Classes:
Volunteers enrolled in the Gold package will be taking Spanish language classes at BridgeArgentina, our affiliate language school in Buenos Aires. For more efficient placement upon your arrival, we ask that you take our Online Spanish Placement Test to determine your language proficiency. If this is not possible, we will test you upon arrival at the school. You will be placed according to your language level in a group of four or fewer students, learning conversational Spanish for four hours a day*. After your class hours, you will go directly to your organization for your volunteer experience.

*Class time for groups of fewer than three students will be reduced from 4 to 3 hours per day.

Accommodations:
Bronze: You will be staying at a hostel with breakfast included. Commute time to the project varies from about 30-90 minutes.
Silver and Gold: You will be staying with an Argentinean host family. Our host families are carefully screened and must meet Volunteer Adventures' requirements before being accepted as a host family. The distance from the school varies from about 30-45 minutes by bus. You will be given a key to your host family's home to come and go as you please. The family will provide a private room and two meals per day (breakfast and dinner).

Meals:
Bronze: Hostel serves breakfast only. You will have access to a kitchen if you choose to prepare your own meals.
Silver and Gold: Host family provides 2 meals a day.

In-Country Support:
Volunteer coordinators will provide support during your time in Buenos Aires. You can also expect help from your fellow volunteers and the staff of both Volunteer Adventures and our partner organization. We also provide a 24-hour cell phone number for emergencies.

Commitment:
On your first day, you will be asked to sign a contract confirming your commitment to your volunteer work. Your commitment is what makes our programs work, and we need to be able to count on you to be present and willing to help during the hours that we have arranged for you. If at any time you cannot fulfill your commitment, you must contact your project coordinator immediately.

Excursions:
Although you will be serving the community for most of your time in Argentina, there may be time for some sightseeing. Below are a few of the trips that BridgeArgentina organizes for students and volunteers, schedule permitting. Students are expected to pay their own transportation costs and entrance fees.