The San Quentin peer-education group Centerforce received support from two Bay Area experts in providing more health-related help to prisoners.
Sandra Herrera and Linda Dobra visited Centerforce for two days to participate in a bilingual hepatitis workshop and to learn more about the Peer Health Education Program at San Quentin.
“The classes given by Centerforce here at San Quentin are excellent,” said Herrera. “I am very impressed with the program offered to the men.”
Herrera works with the HIV Prevention Program in Marin County’s Health and Human Services Department. She started in the field with the Napa Valley AIDS project, training youth to help their peers. She also worked for the Napa Emergency Women’s Services as a domestic violence counselor.
Herrera works alongside Dobra as an HIV and Hepatitis C counselor and Spanish interpreter at the STD clinic for M.A.I. (Minority AIDS Initiative) and for M.A.P. (Marin AIDS Project).
OTHER LOCATIONS
The Centerforce Peer Health Education program at San Quentin is also offered at the Central California Women’s Facility and at Valley State Prison. Trained peer health educators serving time at these institutions work to raise awareness, provide education, and serve as a resource for other incarcerated people on health issues such as hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted infections, tuberculosis, substance abuse, and child support.
Centerforce has been providing peer health education at San Quentin for more than 20 years, said Dr. Julie Lifshay, manager for Centerforce Health & Special Projects. “Our aim is to provide factual information important for people who live here and their families. Centerforce supports other organizations to do the same work in the incarcerated settings in which they work. We provide trainings and materials to other organizations so that as many people and communities can benefit from these programs as possible.”
