Michelle Verwey -- India

Presbyterians Sharing supports Michelle Verwey as she works at the MIBE Graduate School for Nurses in Indore, India. Michelle is teaching community health nursing. The curriculum touches on health care systems, determinates of health, primary health care, epidemiology, communicable diseases and immunization, maternal and child health, bio and vital statistics, and health ethics among other topics. Michelle is supervising and guiding students during their clinical postings and assisting in maintaining students' records. She is also part of a team tasked with setting up a health professional’s learning center which promotes continued education and life-long learning.

Michelle is a registered nurse and a member of St.Andrew’s Victoria. She graduated from the University of Victoria in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing following a two month internship with International Ministries in Jobat, India. “I never expected to go to India, but there could not have been a better opportunity for me” Michelle says with delight recalling the time she spent with her mentor Pauline Brown in rural Madhya Pradesh. While in Jobat she rotated through the wards of the Jobat Christian Hospital and particularly enjoyed working in the Community Health Network during their HIV screening and education campaign. Michelle’s passion for primary health care, health promotion, and health prevention led her to attend the
2008 International AIDS Conference as a youth delegate from the Presbyterian Church in Canada. She has also participated in the CANACOM Young Adults in Mission conference in Curacao and two Youth in Mission trips; one to inner city Toronto and one to Eastern Europe.

Michelle is excited to have the opportunity to collaborate with the nurses and community health volunteers in the Jobat, Sardi, Mendha, and Amkut community health centers. “The work these women and men do saves lives and promotes wellbeing,” she says. They are real role models”. Among the many programmes run by the Community Health Network are antenatal clinics, school health, basic first aid training, vaccinations, kitchen gardens, income generating projects, women’s empowerment groups, and HIV/AIDS screening, education and counseling. “It is a privilege to be teaching India’s future nursing leaders.”