Dr. John Varallo, an obstetrician/gynecologist, spent two weeks in the South American country of Guyana in October 2006 as a volunteer with the nonprofit Omni Med to continue his work to help implement a national cervical cancer screening initiative. Dr. Varallo received his medical degree from Georgetown University and completed his Master of Public Health at George Washington University. Since 2004 he has traveled to Guyana eight times. In the future he plans to take two-week trips to Guyana four times a year.
Guyana suffers one of the highest cervical cancer rates in the world, and the rates are even higher among Amerindian women in remote villages. In an effort to address the unnecessary suffering of these women, Dr. Varallo worked with his Guyanese colleagues to develop an effective and sustainable cervical cancer prevention program. As a result, the Guyana Cervical Cancer Prevention Program (GCCPP) was created and Dr. Varallo became its first director.
An integral part of the GCCPP program is the use of mobile clinics to bring same-day screening and treatment to remote villages, which greatly improves access to care for women. These mobile clinics are almost entirely staffed by Guyanese health workers trained by, or undergoing training by Dr. Varallo and other volunteers with Omni Med.
When the positive results of these efforts became clear, at the request of Guyana's Minister of Health, Dr. Varallo drafted a national policy for cervical cancer prevention. Dr. Varallo is currently working with another VfP partner, JHPIEGO, an international health organization, and the Government of Guyana to rapidly expand the training of local health workers, who will provide a solid foundation upon which to build a national GCCPP.
Dr. Varallo says that the values embodied in the mission of Omni Med drew him to volunteer with the organization. What keeps him returning to Guyana, he added, are the deep, trusting relationships he has built there, as well as the rich personal and professional rewards he receives while volunteering.
"My volunteer experiences have been truly eye-opening and life-changing," said Dr. Varallo. "I can't imagine not being involved. In fact, I have changed my work so that I can devote more time to these causes in Guyana and elsewhere around the world."
