Hospitals / Clinics « Link for Health

Profile: Pop Wuj Medical Spanish Program

Since June 2002, Pop Wuj has offered a Medical Spanish Program for medical students, providers, public health professionals, and other healthcare practitioners (e.g., doctors, nurses, paramedics, midwifery, and physical therapists). For years they have attracted a growing number of healthcare students and professionals who would like to learn Medical Spanish. The Medical Spanish Program provides health and medical education as well as clinical experience in Guatemala.

One of the most important goals of Pop Wuj’s Medical Spanish Program is to increase students’ cultural competency in addition to their Spanish language skills. To deliver healthcare in a compassionate way, with the knowledge of the culture and history of the population one works with, is an essential value to Pop Wuj’s vision of the Medical Spanish Program.

This special program is offered all year round, beginning the first and third Monday of most months (check website for exact dates) and continues for at least four weeks. There are five core components to their program:

4h Daily – One-to-One Spanish Instruction with supplemental curriculum for medical Spanish
2-5h a Day – Participation in the Medical Spanish Program & Clinical experience in the Pop Wuj Clinic (suitable for elective rotation)
Lectures targeting cultural competencies for one week in addition to the One-to-One Spanish Instruction
Homestay with a Guatemalan family in a private room with three meals a day, safe drinking water and a hot shower
Spanish School Activities (except transportation / entrance fees)

For more information, please visit the Pop-Wuj website, or Pop-Wuj Clinic Facebook page.

Profile: ASSCA (Social Services Association – German Cooperative)

ASSCA (Social Services Association – German Cooperative) is a non-profit institution that, through scientific cooperation has brought preventive and curative healthcare, along with other forms of development, to the neediest Guatemalan communities. These services have been delivered through the use of human capital and technology.

The vision of ASSCA is to become one of the most important development institutions in Guatemala; to contribute real, tangible support to Guatemalan communities; and to improve the quality of life of Guatemalans.

History: In 1996, a group of Guatemalan professionals met a German engineer, Elmar Stumpf, who was in the country studying Spanish. After a pleasant, lengthy conversation, they decided to collaborate with Mr. Stumpf on a health project for the neediest people living in and around Quetzaltenango. They first formed a general medicine clinic; and as time passed – and more needs were identified – they also created a dental clinic, a laboratory (for blood/cell/tissue testing), psychological office and a pharmacy.

Today, after 14 years of hard work, they continue to explore new projects and look for ways to support the people who need it most. Currently, they have one of the best equipped and staffed medical centers in the region. A high percentage of the patients are from rural areas and/or low-income families.

Services: Among the services they offer are: 2 general medicine clinics, 2 dental clinics, one biological (blood) laboratory, electrocardiograph (EKG), ultrasound, digital prescription, optometry and a pharmacy with high quality and low cost medicine.

This year they have expanded into a new, larger building to accommodate more patients. As mentioned above, ASSCA is a non-profit organization, and is funded through the donations of patients, partner associations and individual donors in Germany. In addition, all those who work for ASSCA in the clinics also make financial contributions in order to best serve the neediest individuals in and around Quetzaltenango.

To learn more about ASSCA, please visit their website (Spanish only).

Profile: Curamericas Global, Inc.

Curamericas Global partners with underserved communities to make measurable and sustainable improvements in their health and wellbeing. Since 1983, they have been working to reduce infant, child, and maternal mortality rates in regions that lack basic health services. They also organize short-term volunteer trips to their project sites in Guatemala, Bolivia, Haiti and Liberia, where their local partners are in need of both medical and non-medical volunteers.

Since 2003, Curamericas Global has been working with their local partner organization, Curamericas-Guatemala, to reduce infant and child mortality rates, along with maternal deaths, in rural Mayan communities in the country’s northwest region.

Curamericas-Guatemala’s program is located in the Department of Huehuetenango, a remote area in the mountains frequently called the “Triangle of Death” because it has the highest infant mortality and malnutrition rates in the country. Within their project area, 68% of children under the age of 3 are malnourished and 1 in 250 pregnancies result in death. (In the US the rate is 1 in 12,500).

Curamericas Global’s National Program Director, Dr. Mario Valdez, is the only medical doctor for the more than 66,000 people living this area. Their nurses and community health workers provide basic care, health education and outreach, vaccinations, vitamins, and other vital services to mothers and families, mostly through home visits.

Through Dr. Mario and his staff’s dedication, today almost 90% of the children have received lifesaving vaccinations.

One dream that has become a reality in this region is the Calhuitz Maternity Center (La Casa Materna). The Calhuitz Maternity Center was constructed under the combined efforts of Curamericas international volunteers and local community members. It is a center for childbirth, pre-natal care, and women’s health.

The local traditional birth attendants (called comadronas) are spreading the word about the Center to encourage mothers to utilize the facility. The comadronas will attend births at the Center under the supervision of a medical professional, and both mothers and comadronas will have access to education and support. After only one year in operation, the number of women giving birth in the facility is 30% and all obstetric emergencies have been promptly responded to, with no deaths among mothers or children.

To learn more about Curamericas work in Guatemala, please visit their website.

Profile: Clinica Comunitaria Daniel Comboni

The Clinica Comunitaria Daniel Comboni (Daniel Comboni Community Clinic) located in Mixco, Guatemala, provides health, dental, and educational services. The clinic reaches out to the large population of indigenous people living in poverty and extreme poverty in Mixco by offering health and dental services for a nominal fee. Education and nutrition programs provide the people with the information they need to stay healthy and happy and to live more peacefully.

The Clinica Comunitaria D. Comboni began because the people in the area were aware of the need for health services and missionaries were able to answer that need. The clinic serves to provide complete health care, educational programs, and human services to the most needy families and individuals in the surrounding area. The clinic also assists in other corporal and social works of mercy, including the education of children and development of families.

Following the commandment of Jesus to “love one another as I have loved you,” the clinic serves the people with the greatest needs in health, education, and other social areas.

To learn more about the clinic, please visit their website.

Profile: Primeros Pasos

Primeros Pasos is a clinic in rural Guatemala that has a comprehensive outlook on health care. With the collaboration of health professionals, health educators, volunteers, and community leaders, Primeros Pasos offers quality and affordable health care and health education to the rural, underserved communities of the Palajunoj Valley of Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. Primeros Pasos works in the Palajunoj Valley, a rural valley in western Guatemala with high rates of communicable diseases, malnutrition, and untreated chronic diseases. Primeros Pasos is the only reliable and affordable source of local health care for the residents of the Palajunoj Valley.

Primeros Pasos has a long-term vision for the improvement of healthcare in the Palajunoj Valley, integrating its clinical healthcare service with health education and preventative care. Primeros Pasos seeks to maximize existing resources, partnering with communities and other organizations to find efficient solutions to health care challenges.

They incorporate and combine clinical care, health education, and community outreach programs to effectively provide preventative and primary care.

Clinical Care: Primeros Pasos provides primary care, dental services, lab exams, vaccinations, gynecological/obstetric care and medications for the approximately 15,000 people living in the valley. Their clinical staff includes a physician, a dentist, a lab tech, and a dental assistant. Rotating medical students from the University of San Carlos and foreign universities supplement the capacity of their full-time clinical staff. There are approximately 7,500 patient visits at Primeros Pasos each year.

Children’s Health Education: Primeros Pasos has developed a large health education program in the community for children and a growing health education program for women. Primeros Pasos gives approximately 500 health education workshops in the Palajunoj Valley covering age specific topics such as hygiene and nutrition, the environment, natural disasters, children’s rights, domestic violence, drugs, delinquency, puberty and several others.

Healthy Schools Program: Through the Healthy Schools Program, Primeros Pasos brings health care and health education to rural schools and day care centers in the communities they serve. Each day, a class from one of the schools in the Valley arrives at the clinic. The children each receive a medical and dental check-up and participate in an exciting and interactive health education program. The day not only provides students with immediate clinical care, but also tools for bettering their hygiene habits and preventative measures to improve their quality of life.

Women’s Health Education Program: The “Stairway to Good Health” Program aims to raise health awareness and provide the women and caretakers of the Valley with the health information they need to empower themselves to make vital healthcare decisions that affect the lives of themselves, their children and families. Primeros Pasos is able to provide workshops that are designed to address health issues and concerns effecting families and communities that the clinic serves, and more importantly, women specific issues that often times are sensitive subjects. There are currently 75 active women in the program in 6 different community groups and the program is looking to start two new groups this year.

Service Learning & Volunteerism: Primeros Pasos is a center for health education, serving as a primary care rotation for Guatemalan medical students from the University of San Carlos – Quetzaltenango and for foreign students who participate in away rotations under the supervision of Primeros Pasos’ attending physician. Each year, over 100 students and volunteers work at Primeros Pasos. The volunteers are at the heart of the clinic’s operations and with their continuous help and support, Primeros Pasos is able to offer an incredible amount of services with few resources.

Cost-Effective Care: Primeros Pasos is a very cost-effective operation, providing medical services to over 7,000 patients and health education to thousands more for approximately $50,000. Primeros Pasos receives approximately 80% of its funds from the Inter-American Health Alliance (IAHA), its U.S. non-profit partner. Click here for more information about IAHA.

For more information about Primeros Pasos or to apply to volunteer as a health educator or a medical volunteer, please visit their website.

Profile: VOSH

VOSH is a non-governmental, non-sectarian, non-profit organization made up of optometrists, ophthalmologists, opticians, and other persons who have donated their time, talent, and money to help those in need to by building self-supporting eye clinics in the countries they serve. The VOSH mission is to empower local eye care specialists in developing countries by building sustainable eye clinics, funding essential ophthalmic infrastructure, and establishing partnerships with like-minded organizations.

VOSH recognizes the importance of sustainability, and has helped establish permanent eye clinics in Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Mexico and Peru. The three eye clinics in Guatemala include:

Visualiza, Guatemala City
Vincent Pescatore Eye Clinic, San Benito, El Petén
St. John the Baptist Hospital, Jutiapa

The three clinics are staffed by 80 Guatemalans, including 6 ophthalmologists and 2 optometrists, treat in excess of 50,000 patients, and are self-supporting for operating expenses for adult care. VOSH funds the treatment of all indigent children under the age of 14 years old. The clinics are funding the training of 4 employees to become optometrists.

VOSH mission trips provide short term optical and medical eye support as a means to strengthen new eye clinics that are in the early stages of development. The next trip will be to Ixcan on June 12-22.

For more information about VOSH, please visit their website.

Profile: Clinica Maxeña

Clinica Maxeña, in Santo Tomás, provides medical, dental and optical assistance and limited types of surgery. The clinic operation is made up of various projects that receive support from several donor agencies, including the Diocese of Helena, MT. These projects work together to provide excellent care to those who come to Clinica Maxeña and also those encountered during visits to the outlying communities.

Laboratory: There is a Laboratory to assist the doctor and health promoters in diagnosis and treatment, and is staffed by a health promoter who is trained as a technician. The lab tech performs coprology, urinalysis, and tests for tuberculosis, malaria, typhoid fever, venereal diseases, hematology, and pregnancy.

Pharmacy: The Pharmacy sells a limited number of medicines according to the recommendations of the World Health Organization.

Dental Office: The Dental Office has periodic service to the mission community from groups of American dental practitioners who volunteer their time, service and supplies for a period of time at the Mission.

Prenatal Clinics: Prenatal Clinics are held weekly with a midwife-educator, who also operates our clinic in Samayac. She and the midwives who serve the various communities of the area have constant refresher courses with the goal of reducing maternal-infant mortality.

The Medicinal Plant Project: The Medicinal Plant Project includes a demonstration garden with more than 100 varieties of plants that produces seeds and medicines. The coordinator examines patients and prescribes plant-based medicines. The pharmacy at the project produces and sells about 30 medications in the form of tincture, salve, shampoo, soap, and dried plants for teas or compresses. The team also trains promoters in the communities to grow their own plants for medication and treatment.

Community Health Project: The clinic is developing a Community Health Project which will enable communities to build a local health system whereby they can be fairly self sufficient with the option for referrals to the Clinica Maxeña and other health entities. The emphasis in the CHP is on women and children, including teaching and primary care on occasion.

Special Projects: Two very serious endemic health problems in the Boca Costa area in which the clinic is located are tuberculosis and trachoma. There are two projects to identify, treat, reduce or eliminate these diseases that Clinica Maxeña coordinates with the National Health Ministry and the National Committee against Blindness.

To learn more about the clinic, please visit their website (associated with The Diocese of Helena), or read this article.

Profile: Project Concern International/Casa Materna

Project Concern International (PCI) is a non-profit health and humanitarian aid organization dedicated to preventing disease, improving community health, and promoting sustainable development.

PCI began working in Guatemala in 1974, bringing basic health care to Mayan communities around Lake Atitlan. Throughout the 1980s, during the civil war that ravaged Guatemala, PCI trained an extensive network of volunteers and local leaders to deliver health services to families in need. Building on three decades of experience, PCI/Guatemala continues to work with rural communities to improve the lives of vulnerable populations, with a focus on women of reproductive age and children.

Specifically, in 2000, in partnership with a local association of midwives, PCI/Guatemala established the Casa Materna (Mother’s House), an integrated reproductive and maternal health program aimed at reducing maternal and infant morbidity and mortality in the western and central highlands of the country. Casa Materna provides integrated reproductive and maternal and child health care, outreach, and education services, including outpatient clinical services, a pediatric clinic and a 20-bed inpatient facility for women with high-risk pregnancies. Casa Materna is reaching 8,000 women each year with obstetric services, critical care services for maternity patients, family planning services, child nutrition classes, and sanitation trainings.

PCI has also successfully implemented numerous projects in the country designed to increase commercialization opportunities, diversify agricultural practices and improve the health and nutritional status of vulnerable communities.

For more information about PCI, please visit their website, Facebook or Twitter pages.

Announcement: New Clinic in Santa Maria de Jesus

Guatemala SANA is currently constructing a clinic in the town of Santa Maria de Jesus. This lovely facility focuses on an underserved population, and will host traveling groups, beginning in October of 2010.

The group is hoping to raise $305,000 to cover all the costs of the construction, labor, permits and licenses, land, furnishing, medical equipment and supplies. They also would be interested in the donation of quality medical equipment and/or supplies.

This town of 33,000 persons has only ONE small health post, which provides very basic medical care and is only open Monday thru Friday for a few hours. Working with Mayor of Santa María de Jesus, Guatemala SANA Foundation is building a 11 Bed primary care facility that will have:

11 beds for primary care
Pharmacy
Water recycling plant
Laboratory
Testing Room

As you can see from the above photo, the clinic is currently under construction. To view the architect’s plans for the completed facility, click here. For more information about the clinic, please click here, and fill out the contact form for Guatemala SANA.

Profile: Clínica Dental / Río Dulce – UPDATED

This project, run jointly by the Anacortes (Washington) Rotary Club and Club Rotario de la Asunción of Guatemala, began in the early 1990’s and provides year-round dental service to very poor Queqchi Mayan people living in remote areas of eastern Guatemala. Volunteers serve for a minimum of ten days (although the group prefers a longer period because of the great distance to travel from Guatemala City), spending one day at the base clinic; and four days traveling to surrounding areas – setting up in local health centers, schools, churches and homes. The goal is to increase dental health knowledge and provide basic exams, fillings, extractions, and restorations. The program emphasizes a school-based program, but still includes many adults in their outreach.

Volunteers should speak English or Spanish. The volunteer must pay their own travel expenses and hotels in transit. Once at the project, their housing and basic food is provided (volunteers live in a house at the Catholic mission, San Antonio of Padua, 20 KM north of Rio Dulce), as is assistance in coordinating licenses with government and making visa arrangements.

For more information, please visit the project website page. For details about volunteering, please contact Dr. Von and Betty Kuehn, vonbetty@comcast.net, or 360/293-6006.

Profile: Agape in Action

Agape in Action, Inc. is a tax exempt, nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity organization with headquarters located just outside of Houston, Texas. They conduct rural medical clinics in impoverished areas of the Quiché region. Clinics are held in churches, schools, and on occasion, in an actual medical facility, or where the need arises. Their mission is to care for physical ailments and to go beyond the stethoscope to minister to the spiritual and emotional needs of the indigenous Maya in the mountainous Quiché province of the Central Highlands of Guatemala.

They accomplish this by working in close cooperation with local medical officials and hospital facilities. They support pastors in rural areas with medical clinics in their churches, as well as join with other missionaries to reach deep into remote areas to hold medical clinics and show the Jesus Film. Their dorm serves as a facility where they host visiting medical missionary teams that provide surgical care to those who would otherwise go without treatment. They provide training and experience for visiting medical students from the United States and financially support deserving Guatemalan students in medical and nursing schools.

Agape in Action hosts medical and surgery teams from the U. S. who volunteer their time and expertise to perform surgeries at Santa Elena National Hospital, as well as help conduct rural clinics in surrounding towns.

Agape in Action has grown to be accepted as a vital part of the local Santa Cruz community. To a large degree this is because they are closely identified with their partners who are local pastors, educators, medical professionals and other missionaries all working together. Mission teams from the United States have returned over many years and forged relationships that remain strong. They invest and work hard in the community because they are most effective when they combine their talents with those of others who deeply care.

Work has been completed on the expansion of the Agape in Action dorm facility which added over 1,600 square feet of living space, comprised of 4 additional bedrooms, 2 living room areas and 4 new bathrooms. This addition is designed as dual purpose, as it can be used as either 2 separate apartment units or as additional dorm rooms for teams. The current facility can accommodate 24 individuals which will increase to 40 after the expansion is complete. A covered carport has also been added.

They ship medical supplies to their Quiché facility for their mission needs as well as donate supplies and equipment to the Santa Elena National Hospital and other health care providers.

To learn more about Agape in Action, please visit their website.

Profile: The Shalom Foundation

The Shalom Foundation is dedicated to providing humanitarian assistance and financial support to underprivileged children and their families with a focus on Christian values and service. The Shalom Foundation is supported through contributions from private citizens, businesses, churches and foundations.

The Medical Program: The Medical Program is one of The Shalom Foundation’s most important outreach efforts serving children from across Guatemala and changing their lives forever. With the purchase and future opening of the Shalom Surgery Center - The Moore Center for Children’s Health — in Zone 1 of Guatemala City, The Shalom Foundation will impact thousands of lives through these efforts. A number of excellent organizations such as the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, Batten & Shaw Inc., Project Cure, AmSurg, Rock City Mechanical, Vanderbilt University, Rotary International and Belmont University currently collaborate and support this program with their time, donation, talents and expertise.

The goal of Shalom’s Medical Program is to improve the lives of children through better health care, improved access to medical treatment and health education. The program includes facilitating surgical mission trips with doctors from varied specialty groups. Since 2005, The Shalom Foundation and Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt have sent surgical teams to Guatemala City to serve the children there.

These specialized surgery teams will provide operations that are financially and socially out of reach for acutely poor children. Medical teams will also provide dental care and education for children and their families teaching communities how to better care for their on-going health needs. The Shalom Foundation will partner with other organizations with similar goals such as Children’s Hospitals across the United States, members of the medical community, humanitarian aid organizations, non-profit agencies, universities and other NGO’s

Housing: Shalom Foundation volunteers travel to Guatemala to provide construction assistance to families and children living in desperate conditions. Since 1996, generous individuals and organizations have helped build a school, a church and more than 70 safe, sound homes for dedicated Christian families suffering in devastating poverty. In 2009, Construction Initiative volunteers will travel to build new homes for families providing a light in their neighborhoods. Shalom volunteers will also assist with the renovation of their medical facility in Guatemala City.

Some housing volunteers will help build homes from the ground up, while others focus on much needed repairs and community outreach including health clinics and other community-building efforts. Opportunities are plentiful and impact families for generations.

The Housing Program is expanding to help provide for homeless children and their moms living in the Greater Nashville, TN area. This will also be a collaborative effort with Shalom working together with experienced service providers and the local church community.

Education: Sponsors make it possible for children to attend Shalom School and receive a quality education by providing tuition they otherwise could not afford. These children will develop necessary skills and important values which will enable them to become compassionate leaders in their communities. Volunteers traveling with Shalom Foundation to Guatemala City will visit the school and can meet the students sponsored by this important program.

Shalom School is a ministry of Shalom Church in Guatemala City, Guatemala. It is accredited by the Guatemalan government through the Ministry of Education and teaches a Christian-based curriculum. It offers classes from pre-k through the senior level of high school. The ministries of Shalom Church and Shalom School are touching people in the local community, the country and around the world.

Nutrition: The Shalom Foundation has embarked on ambitious efforts to provide meals for students attending Shalom School. When as many as half of the children enrolled at Shalom School were diagnosed as malnourished and had difficulty learning under these adverse conditions, The Shalom Foundation created the “Food for Thought” Nutrition Program. Phase I of the Nutrition Program included the purchase and installation of commercial kitchen equipment at Shalom School providing the facilities required for daily food preparation. This goal was realized in October 2003 with the opening of the Food for Thought Commercial Kitchen. Phase II of the program included securing the necessary food items to provide daily meals for these children. This effort was immediately launched and continues to be a critical need throughout the school year.

Today, the Food for Thought Program feeds approximately 367 malnourished children. On average, 95% of the children in the program reach their normal height and weight within their first year in the program. This program will expand to include Clean Water projects in conjunction with Living Waters for the World and Rotary. This will bring clean water to thousands impacting more lives than ever before and helping alleviate water-related illness.

Shalom Foundation’s next surgery trip will be to Guatemala City in February of 2010. Click here for that trip’s details. To learn more about The Shalom Foundation, please visit their website.

Profile: Boca Costa Medical Mission

Boca Costa Medical Mission is a group of medical clinics, maintained and staffed by medical missionaries that serve the Indigenous people of Southwestern Guatemala. The team has been working in Guatemala since 2003. The base clinic, in the village of Paquila, in the department of Sololá, is about 1 ½ hours south of Quetzaltenango and about 2 ½ hours west of Guatemala City.

The clinic in Paquila is open every Thursday and Friday. A new clinic in Xojola is open two days each month starting 2009. The other clinic locations are open when they host medical teams. The clinics draw from some 45 small villages. The population is indigenous Mayan. The primary language is Quiche although Spanish is also spoken.

The area, Boca Costa de Solola, is one of the poorest areas of Guatemala. It has one of the highest infant and maternal mortality rates in Guatemala. The climate is warm, with coffee and banana trees, sugar cane, corn and rubber trees. It is one of the neediest and the most beautiful places you haven’t yet fallen in love with.

They welcome Medical Teams to the Boca Costa. The experience that the teams have is worth the effort. There are areas in need of medical care that the team cannot get to because there are only two of them and the need is so great. Most teams come for one week. They try to pick two villages that they haven’t been to recently and have the team work in one of the villages for 3 days and the other 2 days.

The minimum size needed to come as a team is one doctor and two/three support people. It is good if at least one of the support people has some medical background. The ideal team is two/three doctors and a total team of ten or less. The clinics are very basic and they would expect to see about 30-40 people per doctor per day. The villages where they go mostly speak Quiche. They hire translators for Quiche/Spanish at no cost to the teams. Any Spanish/English translators will be paid for by the visiting team. Boca Costa do the advertising and the setup (with your help) for the clinics.

For more information about Boca Costa, please see their website.

Profile: Behrhorst Partners for Development & Behrhorst Clinic

The mission of the Behrhorst Partners for Development (BPD) is to strengthen and expand processes of community development and participation that enhance people’s lives. It has two major goals:

To support sustainable development initiatives that improve the health and well-being of particularly vulnerable sectors of society.
To promote through experience-based education an understanding of the principles of participatory community development and the conditions under which it is most effective.

This nonprofit organization’s goal is to work in respectful partnership with Mayan Guatemalans to have a positive impact on the problems associated with Guatemala’s history of violence against indigenous populations, natural disasters, poverty, illiteracy and disastrously high rates of infant and maternal death. BPD trains health promoters, midwives and community medicine dispensers and sets up emergency transportation funds. Working with communities, local government and other non-profit organizations, BPD addresses the root causes of infant and maternal mortality, gastro-intestinal and respiratory illnesses, by launching water and sanitation projects and installing safe, vented cooking stoves.

In 1995, as the “Carroll Behrhorst” Guatemalan Development Foundation approached its goal of becoming a self-sustaining program, the U.S.-based Behrhorst Clinic Foundation, Inc. became Behrhorst Partners for Development, expanding its mission to support many important Guatemalan programs. In 2001, Behrhorst Partners for Development launched a rural health program to decrease child and maternal mortality in 60 villages in the municipality of San Martin Jilotepeque.

Founded in 1962, The Behrhorst Clinic in Chimaltenango provides a vitally needed medical program in the department of Chimaltenango Guatemala for the Kaqchikels, descendants of the ancient Mayan civilization. Progressively it evolved into a creative center for health and development activities, pioneering an array of village-based endeavors.

The Clinic is pleased to accept doctors, nurses and medical students to provide volunteer health care. You must be able to speak fairly fluent Spanish. They prefer volunteers who can spend at least three weeks at the clinic.

To learn more about BPD, and the Clinic, please visit their website.

Profile: Hospitalito Atitlán

Hospitalito Atitlán (HA) is a small, private, non-profit hospital serving a population of 43,000 Tz’utujil Maya on the southern shore of beautiful Lake Atitlán. Local physicians, nursing, and administrative staff work closely in collaboration with volunteer medical personnel from around the world to provide a comprehensive scope of care, including the only 24/7 emergency and surgical obstetrical care within a 2-hour radius. The hospital is supported financially by Amigos Hospitalito Atitlan, a U.S. nonprofit corporation formed to provide financial, material and human resources in support of subsidized healthcare services in rural Guatemala.

More than 60 percent of the patients speak only Tz’utujil, the local Mayan dialect. Hospitalito staff translates Tz’tujil to Spanish for medical volunteers. HA has gone to great lengths to make services affordable to everyone. Social Workers are available to evaluate the resources of the patient and family and provide up to a 100% discount for those with limited resources.

General clinics are held in the three clinic rooms Monday through Friday, from 8:30 to 12:30 and from 2:30 to 5:00/whenever the last patient is seen. The most common conditions seen are listed below.

Adults

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease/COPD (“EPOC”). This is especially common in woman as they spend much of their time over wood fires.
Diabetes – Type 2
Hypertension
Gastritis/GERD (often H. pylori positive)
Intestinal Parasites (ascaris, giardia, and entomoeba histolytica are endemic)
Pneumonia
Cellulitis and Abscesses
Non-tropical (due to altitude) infectious diseases

Children

Colds
Otitis Media
Asthma
Bronchiolitis
Acute diarrhea with/without dehydration
Intestinal Parasites (ascaris, giardia, and entomoeba histolytica are endemic)
Dermatological Conditions
Malnutrition (replacement of healthy foods with soda and junk food)

Prenatal Clinics

Pre-existing/Gestational Diabetes
Grand multips
Pre-eclampsia
Need for slow prim-ip inductions

Emergency Room and Inpatients (some services are staff-dependent):

EKG
Defibrillation
Nebulization
Suturing
Intubation (for transfer, they do not have a ventilator)
Lumbar Puncture
Paracentesis/Thoracentisis/Chest Tubes
Vaginal deliveries, with suction and forceps if required
Fetal Monitoring
Ultrasound
Induction with Misoprostol or Pitocin
Magnesium infusion
Umbilical artery/vein catheterization
Cesarean section
Dilation and curettage
Tubal ligation
Hysterectomy
Fibroidectomy
Cystocele repair, bladder suspension

Education

Fundación K’aslimaal believes that education of staff and the community is an important part of their work. Administration or the department of Social Work organizes these events. Since HA opened in 2005, the staff has been involved in the monthly training that the traditional midwives are required to attend by the Health Department. When a Spanish speaking medical volunteer is available with the ability to teach an important lesson to the traditional midwives, their social worker serves as a translator.

Meetings for the mothers and family members of the women in the Maternal Infant Sponsorship program are held every two weeks in the education room. These classes or “charlas” cover important topics such as danger signs during pregnancy, complications during delivery, breastfeeding, when to take your baby to the doctor, early stimulation, babies first foods, importance of books in the home, and more.

Often, medical volunteers set up informal presentations in the patient waiting room area. Staff education can be formal or informal. Often visiting specialists and organizations schedule educational programs for the staff, or specific technical training. Pediatricians and dentists schedule hygiene talks for the children at the school in Panabaj where the Student Sponsorship is centered.

A scholarship program for HA staff exists. Employees are chosen for scholarships on merit of their work experience.

To learn more about this hospital, please visit their website. Very detailed staffing calendars can be accessed here.

Profile: Pop Wuj Clinic

At the heart of the Pop Wuj Clinic, is a vision for quality, sustainable healthcare delivered to the most vulnerable residents of Quetzaltenango and several villages in the surrounding rural Highlands of Guatemala. The project, started in 2006 by an Emergency Medicine resident, is now a model for grassroots, collective efforts between a nationally recognized academic medical center in New York City, a thriving socially-minded Spanish language school, and their NGO partners at the Timmy Foundation and Todos Juntos. To learn more about the clinic, please visit their website.

Currently, the clinic is open on weekdays and is staffed by a local doctor and administrator as well as by visiting medical students and physicians from abroad who are part of the medical Spanish program at Pop Wuj. 1-2 days of the week the clinic is on the road serving several rural communities, including a village being rebuilt after hurricane Stan (Xelabaj) Pacaxoj, and La Guarderia, a shelter and daycare center for mothers and their children.

The clinic is also the base for regular medical brigades coming from the United States to provide other care and specialty services. Currently physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals from New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, and The Timmy Foundation bring medical supplies and trained personnel to the clinic 4-6 times/year. Medical students and other volunteers from around the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world who come primarily for the Spanish language program are welcome to volunteer with them during the times they are at the clinic.

Pop Wuj Clinic operates closely with the following partners:

Pop Wuj Spanish School Originally started in 1992, Pop Wuj (pronounced “pope-woo”) Spanish School is a collectively owned and operated Spanish language school. Connecting the clinic to this outstanding Spanish language school with a social mission is an essential part of their vision. As an integral part of the school’s curriculum, the clinic will help to generate income for the school: by increasing the value of its medical Spanish courses, offering cultural sensitivity classes, day trips and other events for visiting volunteers. This income will then go towards maintaining the clinic. As this collaboration between the clinic and the school develops, we hope to be able to sustain the clinic primarily through income generated by this relationship.

New York – Presbyterian Hospital The Emergency Medicine Residency Program at New York – Presbyterian has a strong commitment to international medicine, and plays a leading role in the Pop Wuj clinic. With its access to the institution’s intellectual, human, and material resources it provides unparalleled strength to the project through its physicians, nurses, medical students and other support staff who provide direct clinical care; and skilled hands-on training and education to local practitioners and healthcare promoters through organized projects that address the local community healthcare needs. The association of the clinic with this academic institution also provides a quality international experience to its medical students, resident physicians, nurses, public health fellows and others interested in international medicine, helping them to understand and participate in the challenges of global healthcare. In addition, by providing immersion Spanish and cultural sensitivity courses the school is a resource for those healthcare providers wishing to improve their interactions with primarily Spanish speaking patients.

Timmy Foundation The Timmy Foundation currently sends a group of volunteers every few months to the Pop Wuj Clinic to offer medical relief at the clinic and its surrounding villages. Additionally, The Timmy Foundation sends monetary support for their partners at Pop Wuj to maintain the year-round efforts to increase outreach to the rural poor in the highlands.

Todos Juntos Founded in 2001, Foundation Todos Juntos is an NGO devoted to supporting public health and education projects, and providing scholarships for students, in the Highlands of Guatemala. Their current projects include the stove project to build fuel efficient wood-burning stoves in rural communities in order to reduce the epidemic of lung related illnesses from open indoor fires, the latrine project to prevent outbreaks of dysentery, reduce the childhood epidemic of parasitic infections, and protect local water supplies, and most recently to help co-ordinate the efforts for the Pop Wuj Clinic.

Profile: Safe Passage (Camino Seguro)

Safe Passage – Hope, Education, Opportunity

At Safe Passage (Camino Seguro), the mission is to create opportunities and foster dignity through the power of education. Safe Passage works with the poorest at-risk children of families living and working in the Guatemala City garbage dump. Within a safe and caring environment, they provide a comprehensive and integrated program that fosters hope, good health, educational achievement, self-sufficiency, self esteem and confidence.

Safe Passage was founded in December of 1999 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation so that many could become involved. Since then, Safe Passage has grown from educating 40 children to over 500! It represents a community comprised of children and their families living in the Guatemala City dump area, a dedicated local Guatemalan staff, and caring sponsors and volunteers from Guatemala and around the world.

In 2006, the group was the subject of an Oscar-nominated film called Recycled Life.

Program Overview: Hope, Education, Opportunity

Safe Passage (“Camino Seguro”) opened its doors in 1999 to provide hope and assistance to the children of the Guatemala City garbage dump. Where others saw a lost cause and lost resources, they saw potential and determination in the eyes of these children. They believe every child should have the opportunity to receive an education and to go as far as they are able in school. Their programs are designed so that each child can gain the skills needed to obtain stable jobs, to be self sufficient and to lead their families out of poverty in a dignified and permanent way.

Formal education is far beyond the reach for many of the children living on the periphery of the Guatemala City garbage dump. They are unable to afford the school uniforms & shoes, enrollment fees, school supplies and books required by the Guatemalan public schools. With financial support from Safe Passage, each child is able to attend a local public school for the half-day term and then come to their center for educational reinforcement, caring and supervision.

At Safe Passage, each child receives assistance with homework and hands-on learning activities designed to reinforce basic primary school concepts through their educational reinforcement program. They also participate in a range of arts, music, sports & recreational activities, English language classes, and computer instruction that provide opportunities to learn valuable life and social skills.

Safe Passage is committed to providing each child with nutritional support, including a daily healthy meal & snack, medical attention from their on-site clinic, vocational training programs, and weekend clubs for girls, boys and mothers. Additionally, Safe Passage provides services for children 2-3 years old through the early childhood program, and adult literacy for their children’s mothers.

Safe Passage currently serves more than 550 children ages 2-20 years old. To find out more about Safe Passage, please visit their website, or blog, or follow them on Twitter.

Here is one of the many children who has benefitted from Safe Passage’s work:

photo courtesy of Kenna Klosterman

Profile: Hospital de la Familia

What started over 30 years ago as a small dispensing pharmacy in Nuevo Progreso is today a year-round medical facility offering general medical, minor surgery, pediatric, obstetrical and dental services. The hospital consists of wards that can accommodate 72 patients.

During the past several years, the hospital has maintained a staff of over 60 full-time employees, including 4 doctors, 12 nurses, and 3 or 4 nurse/nun instructors and a contingent of Guatemalan medical and dental students. The hospital treated over 10,000 patients last year.

In addition, major surgery is provided by the volunteer U.S. surgical teams sent by the Hospital de la Familia Foundation in February, May, August and November for 2-week stays. These teams treat an additional 5,000 patients, performing surgery on 1,600 of them.

Other hospital programs include the Malnutrition Therapy Clinic, the Dental Clinic, Nurse Training Classes, Barefoot Doctor Classes (teaching first aid and disease detection), Adult Education Classes, and Sewing Classes. They also operate grade school with an enrollment of about 150. Tuition, books, and uniforms are free. There is a separate program for adults.

For more information about the hospital, please visit their website.

Profile: Salud y Paz

Clinic: Salud y Paz currently operates two health and dental clinics that primarily serve the Mayan population in the Quiche Department. 71% of the rural Mayan population lives in EXTREME poverty, with an income of less than US$1.00/day, or approximately $360/year. Since August 2001 the clinics have been open full time. They have now documented well over 100,000 patient visits and estimate they have provided millions of dollars in medical/dental services.

Preschool: On February 2nd, 2009, the Susanna Wesley Preschool opened its doors to 24 five- and six-year-old Camanchaj children. The primary goals of this program are to increase children’s chances for success in the public school system with high quality, culturally sensitive preschool curriculum and to promote healthy development by providing nutritious meals (daily breakfast, snack, and lunch), teaching healthy habits (such as hand washing and teeth brushing), and offering medical and dental care. The children attend classes Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m, and each child receives a backpack, school hoodie, and all necessary school materials. They have two local teachers who speak K’iche and Spanish and a volunteer school director with graduate training in education.

A Health Promoter Program: “Las Amigas” is a group of local women who meet about once a month in the clinic at Camanchaj. Their meetings cover a wide array, but ultimately work towards education and promotion of health and hygiene in their own communities. A course consisting of 3 training sessions is held each 18 months, with 6 months in between each course. This allows the attendees to practice what they have learned for 6 months before the next training. The Amigas are equipped with the knowledge and tools to then teach their families, neighbors, and communities at large.

Host Program: In addition to their regular weekly clinic hours (two days in each clinic), they host medical, surgical, and construction teams from the U.S. throughout the year.

International Hands in Service’s commitment to diversity means the Board, management, full time employees, contract employees, and volunteers recognize that all persons are to be treated with dignity, fairness and respect regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion, socio-economic status, and family status. IHS is committed to creating an environment where differences are valued and all personnel are a productive part of a high-performing team delivering high quality services to their clients. Any behavior or statement contrary to this policy is a violation of IHS’s commitment to diversity and may be a form of harassment. Such harassment may include, but is not limited to, derogatory comments, jokes, slurs or abusive language. All IHS personnel are expected to conduct themselves in a manner that values differences and is not offensive to other employees and clients.

Profile: ASSADE

The mission of Assade is to provide health services to residents of San Andres Itzapa, and to educate people inside and outside of the clinics in order to prevent diseases and promote health. Their goal is to reach and serve at least 75% of the poorest and most susceptible population, within time frame of three years.

They serve mainly the poorest women and children, but don’t decline their services to anybody who requires it, and cannot afford private services.

ASSADE provides primary health services, nebulization and treatment of emergencies. They treat an average of 500 persons monthly, 60% of whom are children and the rest are mostly women. They only charge a symbolic fee of Q3.00 ($0.30) and provide the medication free of charge or at a very low fee when people can pay. ASSADE is a financially sustainable organization. They also offer psychological attention and carry out medical missions.

In the short term, they plan to implement a dental clinic; and a health, education and nutrition program. To learn more about ASSADE, please visit their website.

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