Volunteering Opportunities in Boston

Thank you for your interest in volunteering at PIH. If you are interested in volunteering at our Boston office but do not see an opportunity listed below that matches your skills, interests, and availability, you may still wish to download and complete our Volunteer Application form [MS Word, 60 KB] [PDF, 16 KB]. Due to the volume of inquiries we receive, we are not always able to acknowledge receipt of your application. We will contact you only if your application is selected for additional review.

Volunteer Java Programmer – Various locations: Partners In Health’s supported project in Mexico will be piloting a ground-breaking technology that allows health workers in remote areas to use clinical protocols on cell phones. Partners In Health seeks a programmer proficient in Java to help translate these clinical protocols into the software program CommCare. This position is an excellent opportunity to connect programming skills with social entrepreneurship and global health. The project will benefit a rural, underserved area of Chiapas, Mexico. Time commitment is 10 hours+ per week for 12 weeks. The majority of volunteer hours may be completed remotely if desired, or may be completed at the PIH office.  The Programmer will be supervised and mentored by programmers at Dimagi, Inc. and from the PIH Clinical Director.  To apply, please send a resume and statement of interest to Chiapas@pih.org. 

CommCare is a program based on JavaRosa, an open source platform for mobile data collection. Dimagi, Inc. is leading the development of CommCare, and D-Tree International is leading implementation.

Volunteer Curriculum Writer – Boston: PIH is seeking a Volunteer Curriculum Writer to assist the training team in developing and coordinating training curricula on a wide variety of HIV and primary health care related topics. This includes the support of colleagues in PIH project sites worldwide who are developing curricula and training materials. Specifically, the training team has a list of training materials it would like to develop in response to program needs identified within our accompagnateur (community health worker) program, and would appreciate the help of a volunteer in creating these resources. This is a volunteer position and preferably the candidate would be available a minimum of 10-15 hours/week starting as soon as possible. More information about this position.

Volunteer Medical Writer – Boston: Partners In Health is seeking a medical writer to assist with the overall development and completion of a curriculum for nurses and doctors providing HIV care in resource-poor settings. The main task of the medical writer will be helping to develop, review and strengthen the medical content of the curriculum (read more information about this position). This is a volunteer position for a period of 12 weeks. Preferably, the candidate would be available a minimum of 10 - 15 hours/week during this 12-week period. To apply, please complete the volunteer application form and send it to volunteer@pih.org.

Office Volunteers – Boston: Partners In Health is seeking detail-oriented volunteers to help in the Boston offices with regular administrative responsibilities. Volunteers need to be available during regular business hours for a minimum of 15 hours per week and should be able to commit for three months. Patience, flexibility, and attention to detail are mandatory for this position.  Interested applicants should complete the volunteer application form and send it to volunteer@pih.org. Thank you in advance for your interest.

Translators – Boston: Partners In Health is seeking volunteers with translation experience to support our office in Boston, MA.  Candidates must be fluent in English and be proficient in speaking and writing at least one of the following languages: Spanish, French, Russian, or Haitian Creole. Volunteers must be able to commit to either: 1) ongoing volunteer work for at least 10 hours a week, or 2) a short-term intensive project during specified dates. Interested applicants should complete the Volunteer application form and submit it along with a sample of previous translation work to volunteer@pih.org.  In the application question about specific skills and talents, please list each language for which you are applying and evaluate your proficiency in speaking and writing using the following terms: beginner, intermediate, advanced, fluent.

International Opportunities

Aside from the postings below, we generally do not recruit volunteers for overseas work. Local medical professionals and community health workers at our partner projects carry out the bulk of the work, and language barriers and our limited resources for supervision and training also prevent us from accommodating volunteers. While on occasion we do engage volunteer medical and technical specialists, we’re committed to working with the members of the communities we serve in order to expand local skills and knowledge, build up local infrastructure, and ensure sustainability.

If you are interested in overseas work, we encourage you to explore opportunities at other organizations; Idealist.org , The International Volunteer Programs Association, and The International Medical Volunteers Association are three of many excellent web and print resources.

Volunteer Training Coordinator – Malawi: The Malawi Training Coordinator (a one year volunteer position), is responsible for overseeing the planning, implementation, expansion and reporting of all PIH/APZU training related activities within Malawi, and will be based in Neno. Working closely with the Ministry of Health and other partners, the aim is to strengthen and expand upon PIH/APZU’s training system and capacity to deliver effective training activities, and to help ensure improved program outcomes and quality of care. Download this PDF for more information. Interested candidates should send their resume and cover letter to hr@pih.org.

Volunteer Training and Community Health Program Organizer – Rwanda: The Program Organizer will provide programmatic and administrative support to the Partners in Health Community Health and Training Programs in the District of Burera. He/she will work closely with the Departments of Training, Community Health and Burera Program Management to support the planning implementation, and monitoring of all training and community health activities in the District of Burera. This person will help to strengthen the partnership between PIH and the Ministry of Health and will serve as a liaison between the Burera team and the Community Health and PIH Training Departments. Download this PDF file for more information. Interested candidates should send their resume and cover letter to hr@pih.org.

Finance Mentor – Rwanda: Reporting to the Boston-based PIH International Finance Manager, the Rwanda Finance Mentor will spend a year working closely with, training, and mentoring the local team in Rwanda on a broad range of financial matters, supporting the PIH Rwanda Chief Financial Officer and the financial team.  The ultimate objective of this year-long position is to leave this project with a strong autonomous team supported by rigorous, improved processes. Download this PDF file for more details. Interested applicants should send a resume and cover letter to hr@pih.org.

Surgeon – Zanmi Lasante, Haiti: Partners In Health/Zanmi Lasante is looking for a volunteer general surgeon to work with the Zanmi Lasante surgical team in Haiti. This volunteer will report to PIH's Boston-based Medical Director and Zanmi Lasante's Director of Surgical Services, based in Haiti. The volunteer will be posted initially in Cange, Haiti and then possibly at one of our two other surgical sites in the Central Plateau. The caseload would include routine general surgery as well as management of surgical emergencies, trauma, and emergency caesarian sections. The individual must have completed residency training and be proficient in general surgery and caesarian sections. Experience working in a developing country is helpful, and a strong commitment to social justice is essential. Fluency in either French or Haitian Creole is preferred. A minimum commitment of 6-12 months is necessary. Interested candidates should send resume and letter to volunteer@pih.org.

Socios En Salud Volunteers – Peru: There are currently openings for eight volunteers to work for periods of 2 months to a year on a variety of projects, ranging from research to graphic design and assisting with program design and management. Download this PDF file for all the details. All positions are available immediately. Please send a cover letter specifying the position in which you are interested and when you are available to start as well as a resume to Elaine Weisman, Peru project assistant at eweisman@pih.org.