Yes, I am going to ask for your money. Let me tell you why.

Raising Money was never my job. I certainly didn’t start out as a fundraising specialist. Which is probably a good thing. Not only is it MUCH harder than I would have thought, but it is also pretty difficult just to ask people for their money. Try walking up to a stranger and asking him to open his wallet, and you will know what I mean. After all, my training was in the fire service and paramedicine, two of the most trusted professions. Armed with those skills, previous disaster response experience and along with good ideas and a great cause, people would immediately see the need and send money.

Hmmm…. not.

The reality is that there are many thousands of charitable organizations out there, good, bad and just plain silly. In fact, I get more mail, E-mail and texts from professional fundraising companies than I do from donors. Charity fundraising services, classes, and internet programs are big business. If they just pooled what they spend on trying to sell me their services and donated it instead I could stop harassing you for funds. Alas, that is not to be.

Making it Personal.

When I first came to Central America a decade ago it was not as a dedicated relief worker, but simply to discover the land from which my immigrant grandfather came. What I found was a place filled with natural beauty. Where people still say hello to strangers on the street, where they actually care about how you are doing, and where, though impoverished, they share a common dream of making their country better.

Equipped only with my high-school and street Spanish, I began to volunteer for a small NGO and quickly discovered the “mission” that would consume the next decade of my life, and become my full-time, unsalaried job when I retired from the fire service. I met incredible people and talented volunteers, people who would become my dearest friends and valued co-workers in a daunting task, to make things just a little bit better. If it sounds like I am trying to be noble, I am not. I get far more from the people I work with than I could ever give in return.

It is not until you watch firefighters have their boots burn off their feet searching smouldering hot volcanic ash, then offer you the shirt off their back (Thank You, Henri!) that you begin to understand Guatemala. Share a humble meal with a teacher in a rural village who hasn’t been paid in six months, yet goes to work each day. Spend a morning with a Maya elder speaking of the spirits of the mountains or an afternoon with a farmer who explains the intricacies of growing papaya or a fifth grader harvesting coffee in the mountains to earn a few extra quetzales for his family. Once you know these people, it is difficult not to want to help. Raising money is a small price to pay.

The Sales Pitch

AMEDICAusa was born of a simple idea. Take the expertise and experience of our founding board members and volunteers and apply them to some of the major problems in Guatemala and Central America. Medical care, education and disaster relief. Make a big bang for the buck. Use targeted programs to help in specific areas and not try duplicate the “big guys”.

We Are There Before, During and After the Disaster.

Perhaps what AMEDICAusa is best known for is our disaster relief and training programs. Existence here can be dangerous. Guatemala is the most “at risk” non-island country on earth from natural disasters. Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, storms and hurricanes from both the pacific and atlantic oceans, landslides or flooding are nearly daily occurrences. Add to that the “normal” emergencies of daily life and the violence endemic in the cities.

Most disaster relief organizations are reactive. Choosing to “bank” donations in accounts that may never be used, or relying solely on “Disaster Relief Teams” to respond to future disasters, days or weeks after the event. These efforts are valuable, to be sure. But they do not provide immediate response in the all important first seventy two hours after the event.

The AMEDICAusa Difference

AMEDICAusa chooses to be proactive. As in the United States, the primary Guatemalan emergency response in case of disaster is the Fire Service. They provide the rescue and emergency medical care for the vast majority of the nation. But they are stretched thin, having only about 250 stations in the entire country. (For comparison, Tennessee, about the same land area, has over 1200 fire stations for its 6 million residents. Guatemala’s population is well over 17 million.)

Many of the firefighters and medics are volunteers. The career firefighters are woefully underpaid (about $300 a month for 24 on – 24 off schedule). Training is hit and miss. Equipment is in short supply. Paramedics must purchase their own medications out of pocket. Government support is meager at best. Many stations still must rely on bucket brigades for firefighting because they have no fire engine. And, the roads are bad. Seriously bad. Travel times between stations can be greater than four HOURS. That’s a long time to wait for help.

By providing donated equipment and training to the Emergency Services of Guatemala on an ongoing and “pre-disaster” basis AMEDICAusa and our partners, The Reds Team, can make an impact in disaster response before the ground even stops shaking. Not just in major disasters, but in the smaller, non-newsmaking events that happen on a daily basis.

How We Do It

We supply equipment donated by agencies all across the United States. Generally used, but serviceable, gear that represents a substantial improvement over what little they have in Guatemala. Collecting, sorting and transporting this equipment, (everything from Helmets and boots to fully equipped fire engines) is only the beginning of our mission. The gear itself is valuable, but the training to use it is equally important.

Our instructors are all volunteers, professional firefighters, paramedics and rescue technicians. They donate their time and expertise to help their brother and sister first responders do their jobs more safely and effectively. From small scale classes with two or three departments to biennial large scale schools with up to fifty departments participating, we are constantly supporting the disaster response of the most important rescuers… those that are already “in-country”.

What’s up, Doc?

Medical care in rural Guatemala is scant. Something like 90% of the physicians in the country are concentrated in the two largest cities leaving the more rural population with little care. Relied upon by most of the people, the national hospital system is underfunded, understaffed and ill equipped. But, they do what they can with what little they have.

AMEDICAusa provides donated equipment, medications and volunteers in rural hospitals and clinics in Guatemala. Supporting specialized medical and dental missions, providing internships and clinics to rural villages, and EMS training to the fire service we are helping to improve the care available to the poor and indigenous of the country.

It’s About the Kids Too

Education. Simply attending school can be difficult or impossible for the poor and indigenous people of Guatemala. One of the things I noticed as I travelled around the country is how many children are out and about during what should be school hours. Many thousands of children in Guatemala are unable to attend or finish elementary school simply because their parents can not buy the simple supplies needed.

Basic school supplies are expensive. Particularly when you only make a dollar or two a day. AMEDICAusa provides these supplies, at no cost to the families, directly to the individual children in rural schools. By purchasing the supplies from wholesalers in Guatemala, and having our volunteers deliver them, we stretch the available dollars. This adds a little to the local economy, and reaches farther than I ever expected. But it does cost money. Our reach is limited only by your generosity. Keeping children in school and improving their education is perhaps the greatest gift you can provide to kids struggling in poverty.

Tying It All Together

So, three major programs, what do they have in common? They actually tie together more closely than you might think. It is rare that I do a school supply mission and I am not asked to examine an ill or injured child. Firefighters often serve as our volunteers on school missions and are always our most valuable ambassadors into a community. (Who knows a community better than the local firefighters?) Does it do any good to teach CPR if the local hospital does not have the equipment to treat the patient? One program flows into the other and all are important.

Yes, I am Raising Money

Raising money was never supposed to be my life’s work. Frankly, I would much rather be teaching firefighting in the lowlands of Petén, visiting a small school somewhere in the mangroves or seeing patients in a mountain village. But the fact is, none of those things can happen without you.

The reality is that raising money is probably my most important job. It is what allows our other volunteers, instructors and experts to reach the communities where they are most needed and can do the most good. Taking good care of that money, being as miserly as Scrooge with costs while being as generous as Santa with aid, is probably a close second.

If you have read this far, I hope I have “sold” you on the benefits of what we do. There are a LOT of charities out there and you are going to hear from them all over the next few weeks. But I am extraordinarily proud of our work and of the people, volunteers all, who make it possible. So, please, forgive me if I brag a little.

And, please, take a little time to open your heart and your wallet, and donate to AMEDICAusa.

The post Raising Money for Tomorrow’s Disaster appeared first on AMEDICAusa.

A child clings to life in the Pediatric Emergency Room

There can be no observers here.

 I am “bagging” a three month old baby girl. She has been brought into the hospital limp, pale and unconscious and with a obviously swollen belly. She hasn’t nursed for two days and was fussy and inconsolable yesterday. This morning her mother couldn’t wake her and rushed her into the emergency room tied to her back on a motorbike. Now she is no longer making an effort to breathe on her own.

 

She is in septic shock, likely the result of an intusseception, a rare intestinal condition that can kill part of the intestine and cause life threatening complications. Her life is dependent on a small tube inserted into her throat and continuing to squeeze the attached bag to inflate her lungs every few seconds. I took over the job of breathing for the baby when the nurse’s hands began to cramp.

The doctor and a nurse struggle to get an I.V. into the child. This is always difficult in a baby, much harder when they are in shock. I offer to start an inter-osseous line, a procedure we would commonly use in the States in this situation, but the hospital doesn’t have the necessary needles, and a regular catheter would likely break before penetrating the bone. I continue to breath for the baby. Finally they manage to place a very small IV.  It will have to do. We’ll continue this until the infant goes into surgery and other staff will continue to manually breathe for her through the surgery and over the next two days.  There is no mechanical ventilator available to take over.

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Welcome to the Hero Hospital

The Weather Worn Sign of the Hospital Nacional, Retalhuleu, Guatemala

The first thing you notice here is the heat.  Unsurprisingly, the western Guatemalan lowlands are hot in the summer. The daily afternoon thunderstorms raise the humidity to truly oppressive levels. A coastal breeze helps a little when outdoors, but it doesn’t reach into the hallways or exam rooms to provide even a little relief.  Other than in the operating room, the air-conditioning doesn’t work.

Fanning with a notebook, Doctor Lorena Yancor. and student attempt to keep cool in the ER

The commercial fans installed to compensate are victims of overuse and age and have long given up the ghost. Doctors and staff have brought in a few personal fans here and there, but they are small, and ineffective beyond a couple of feet. The patients, family and staff, crowded in to cramped spaces, provide an additional source of heat…and without ventilation, a source of smells that are best left undescribed.

The Hospital Nacional of Retalhuleu is the primary source of medical care for the poorest of the poor in this part of Guatemala. Part of the country’s two-tier national healthcare system, it serves those who don’t have a regular paycheck: the campesinos  (farm workers),  the indigenous, and the unemployed. Like it’s sign, it is worn around the edges. Nicked and dented by uncountable stretchers, the paint could use another coat.  But it is clean and kept so by a squad of mopping janitors, who make endless rounds of it’s floors. The hospital is chronically short of medicines, equipment and even routine maintenance supplies.

Reading x-rays by window light

There is one, elderly, x-ray machine to service the entire hospital and the waiting times are long. The films themselves are read through an open window…as the light-boxes generally don’t work. The lab, though reasonably well equipped, is dark…because they don’t have the florescent tubes to replace those burnt out.  CT scans, MRIs, and the other modern diagnostic tools are a wishful dream. 

The tools available here are primarily the hands, eyes and ears of the medical staff, and they are surprisingly good. Many of the senior staff have been here since the Hospital opened some thirty years ago. Eschewing the more lucrative practices they could have in Guatemala City (some 90% of all of Guatemala’s doctors reside in the capitol city), they continue to practice here where their talents can be put to the best use. All have become excellent diagnosticians and instructors for the medical students that often rotate through the hospital as part of their training.

AMEDICAusa is a supporter of the hospital, donating medicines and equipment in support of their efforts to treat the poor. (Among other things, AMEDICAusa donated most of the equipment for their gynecology clinic, where they had previously been forced to to exams on an office desk.) This time we brought several crates of pediatric medicines…and two talented students from the United States to serve a volunteer internship in the hospital.

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The Pink Sand

Four kids come into the pediatric emergency room with their father. They range in age from 4-10. All have makeshift bandages, dishtowels, t-shirts, scraps of cloth, around their hands and feet. Dad is limping a little. A medical student unwraps one child’s hand and guesses she has a nasty skin infection of some sort. I look at the family. All the kids have the same infection and only on their hands and feet? Something isn’t right.  I have another of the kids unwrap his hands. Under the dirty towel, and under the pink layer of calamine lotion that Guatemalans put on any type of skin disorder, his palms are shredded and blistered. Chemical burns?

A Child’s Chemical Burn in the Pediatric Emergency Room.

Dad is dressed in the unofficial uniform of a Guatemalan campesino, a farm worker. Worn, dirty jeans, a second hand t-shirt and a beat-up cowboy hat. A machete scabbard is on his belt. I ask if he lives in el campo. Yes, he says. He works in the fields. Do they use chemicals there? Yes, sometimes.  Whats wrong with your leg? He points to the kids hands… el mismo..the same, he says. I call the chief pediatrician over  and explain what I think this is. I ask the kids what they have been doing over the past couple of days. Playing in the new arena rosa… the pink sand…that they dumped near our house.

It is an industrial, urea based, fertilizer. Apparently, no one thought to tell the farm workers it was dangerous. The kids have been building sandcastles with it, and walking barefoot through the spillage. Dad has the same burns on his leg from repeated contact as he shoveled it into wheelbarrows. 

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Organized Chaos

The only formal waiting room in the hospital is in the outpatient clinic. All the other patients, for the emergency rooms, labor and delivery, OB/GYN and so forth, must wait patiently in the hallways, or under what little cover is available outside. Lines form in the hallways for each service, a mixture of patients and their families. All chat quietly while they wait. Well kids scurry about, playing improvised games underfoot. Mothers quietly nurse their babies while exchanging news with friends. None seem disturbed by the wait, even when the occasional fire department ambulance patient is rushed in ahead of them. They know the drill.

Dr. Gilberto Morales

Overseeing the operations is Dr. Gilberto Morales. A dapper man, he manages to appear calm and cool while nattily dressed in always-pressed shirt, tie and lab coat, despite the heat.  It would be easy to rage in frustration at the job he is required to do, taking care of thousands of patients without sufficient resources, but he remains unruffled.  He orchestrates the staff, building, equipment and patients with admirable restraint and aplomb. He has set up a rotation for our interns – Emergency, Pediatric Emergency, OB/GYN clinic, Labor and Delivery, and Surgery – where they will both learn the most, and be most helpful. After a brief tour of the hospital, the interns are handed off to the respective department chiefs.

Rites of Passage

In Los Campos, the communities of the farm workers, young boys at the age of 12 or 13 are given their first machete. This universal tool, kept honed to razor sharpness and carried in decorated sheaths, requires some practice to use efficiently and effectively.  Like a baseball player with a bat, there are a lot of errant swings before mastering the hand-eye coordination necessary to hit consistently.  The emergency room often sees those who have swung and missed.

AMEDICAusa volunteer Efim Oykhman repairs a machete wound

“Mario” is a thirteen year old boy who walked in to the ER with an embarrassed grin and his dirty, and now bloodstained, t-shirt wrapped around his right wrist. No longer attending school, he has joined his father in the fields of a local finca. He was chopping weeds out of a sugar cane field when an errant left handed swing hit his wrist, rather than the noxious plant he was aiming at. His is the third machete injury we have seen today.

It will be the first that our intern, Efim Oykhman, closes himself.  He has assisted and observed in several previous procedures, and now is ready to do it himself. Under the watchful eye of the surgeon (called in to rule out any tendon injuries), he closes the wound with eight deft sutures, a little antibacterial ointment and a dressing.  Mario goes home a little wiser, and Efim has successfully performed his first surgery. Both are happy…and a little relieved.

Treat ’em and Street ’em

Pediatrician Dr. Carlos René Jaime González, a native mexicano, very patiently explains to the parents of his tenth patient of the day that the pediatric emergency room is not where minor routine illnesses belong. First they should go to the local Clínica de Salud (Health Clinic) in their area. Second, for more serious problems, to the outpatient clinic. Only the really sick or injured are supposed to come to the pediatric emergency room. The lines to the emergency rooms are full of patients that really should be in the outpatient clinic on the other side of the hospital, but that area is full and the wait times are longer. Many of the patients have “self triaged” to the emergency room, and there is no staff to prevent that. The doctors are resigned to this, though it takes up valuable time. It also means that some very sick people are waiting outside, while less seriously ill manage to be seen first. Dr. Gonzales frequently checks the hallways to make sure a seriously sick or injured child isn’t waiting.

Dr Carlos René Jaime González and AMEDICAusa Volunteer Daria Smoliarchuk Discuss a Patient

The doctor’s at the Hospital Nacional don’t have the time to get to know their patients well. There simply isn’t enough time in a day to take detailed family histories nor fill out many forms. In Dr. Gonzales’ pediatric admitting room, the patients come in, get a quick once over and basic history, a rapid but thorough exam, then either medication samples off the shelves (yes, drug salesmen come even to Guatemalan ER’s) or a prescription for medicine from the hospital pharmacy (free) or their local farmacia if the hospital is out of medicines. Total elapsed time…maybe five to ten minutes for the average patient. 

Few make it beyond the anteroom and into the three treatment beds in the pediatric ER. Those are reserved for those truly in need of emergency care. A asthmatic child working on his fourth nebulizer, a ten year old with a fractured arm, and our 3 month old with sepsis.

Our “Countess Dracula” Gets Her First Case

AMEDICAusa Volunteer intern holds retraction during surgery at Hospital Nacional Retalhuleu

Back in emergency a young woman comes in with severe abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and fever. She has been suffering symptoms for two days. Dr. Lorena Yancor, Chief of Emergency services, checks in on the patient demonstrating techniques for abdominal assessment for our interns, while I translate and explain what she is looking for and why.  This is why our interns are here, to learn to examine patients without the diagnostic tools available in the States. The patient has all the classic signs of appendicitis .  A surgeon is called and he demonstrates again the same skills, as well as a couple of advanced techniques to confirm the diagnosis. Off to surgery she goes for an emergency appendectomy. The surgeon asks our intern if she would like to assist. Daria, drawn to blood like a moth to flame, and who appears magically when ever a patient comes in with an open wound, readily agrees. As it turns out, the surgery was just in time, and was more complicated than first thought. As the surgeon opens the patient, her appendix ruptures.

Twin Problems for Hospital Births

Prenatal care is still a rarity for most women in Guatemala, particularly in the poor and indigenous communities. Often a woman will go through her entire pregnancy and delivery without any medical care at all. Health and sex education is lacking, brought here only by NGO’s like AMEDICAusa and it’s partners. 

Birthing in Guatemala is often attended by midwives, comadronas, who are largely untrained in modern medical techniques. They often rely solely on traditional indigenous practices and beliefs. Some are very good, and have received additional training from NGO’s and limited government programs. As a consequence, many of the births done in the hospital are complicated, referred here by midwives skilled enough to recognize problem pregnancies.

During our intern’s rotations in the OB/GYN clinic, labor and delivery, and surgery, fully half of the births were cesarean and most of these births were performed on an emergency basis. Prematurity, age of the mother (both very young and very old) and undiagnosed maternal medical problems are common issues.  

“Maria” is a 19 year old woman who came in to the OB/GYN clinic with painless vaginal bleeding in what appears to be her third trimester of pregnancy. She doesn’t know exactly when her last period started, but she thinks it was last November or December, either eight or nine months ago, and she has had no prenatal care. 

Healthy twins delivered by emergency C-Section at Hospital Nacional Retalhuleu

This is her second pregnancy – she had a healthy baby girl two years ago. Maria has been “spotting” off and on for a couple of days, but has more bleeding today and is having some irregular contractions. Her external abdominal exam reveals TWO fetal heads and possibly two sets of  heart sounds. She is sent for an ultrasound, which reveals not only twins at about 36 weeks gestation, but also Placenta Previa, a condition that threatens both her life and those of her babies. An emergency c-section is called for and our interns are there to assist. 

 

Medicine in a Disaster Zone

Once delivered, our twins are moved to the neonatal ward. Like all the other wards, the patients here are grouped together in large rooms without walls or curtains to separate the beds. The neonatal ward is a stark reminder of the disasters that are often visited on Guatemala. A large fissure has appeared, running vertically down a structural wall. The crack is the result of a 6.6 earthquake that occurred in June and effected the stability of the structure. The epicenter of the quake was 35 miles from the hospital. One man was killed, crushed by a wall collapse about a kilometer from the emergency room. The entire neonatal unit is going to have to be moved for safety until repairs can be made.

Earthquake damage in wall (L) of the neonatal unit of Hospital Nacional Retalhuleu

Outside the hospital, ash and steam clouds can occasionally be seen rising from explosive  Volcan Santiaguito some 15 miles to the northeast. The hallways in the hospital have discrete triage system markings denoting catchment areas for patients in case of mass casualties.

They are as prepared as they can be, but shortages of supplies and equipment are worrisome.

 

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Did you know?

AMEDICAusa provides support and equipment to the Hospital Nacional of Retalhuleu and other medical facilities for the poor and indigenous peoples of Guatemala. We can’t do it alone. Your donations are what make our programs possible. Please give generously.

Be an AMEDICAusa hero and donate here.

AMEDICAusa, inc. is an I.R.S. 501(C)(3) registered charity, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland.

We are always looking for volunteers who wish to help in Guatemala. Get the details here.

The post Guatemala Hospital Saves Lives Despite Critical Shortages appeared first on AMEDICAusa.

]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/hero-hospital-saves-lives/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/when-one-child-grabs-your-heart/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/when-one-child-grabs-your-heart/#respond Mon, 19 Dec 2016 17:07:45 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=1069   AMEDICAusa, inc. is an I.R.S. 501(C)(3) registered charity, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland. We are always looking for volunteers who wish to help in Guatemala. Get the details here. Donating to AMEDICAusa ‘s ongoing programs is easy. Get the details here.

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Pascualita with AMEDICAusa V.P. Silvana Ayuso and Hogar Feliz staff

 

Life is hard for every poor and indigenous Maya child in Guatemala.

San Andres Semetabaj, Sololá, Guatemala-

Sometimes though, one child’s struggle grabs your heart and you know you just have to do something.

We first met Pascualita during a medical mission at the National Hospital in Retalhuleu. She was being treated for a very serious, rare and incurable genetic skin disorder, Ichthyosis.   The disease is often fatal to infants in Central America, who suffer dehydration, infections, chronic blistering, overheating, and rapid-calorie loss due to the condition.  Rescued from a a mother  that was unable to care for her, often abusive, and was using her for bait while begging in the streets,  at four years old, she has already beaten the odds by simply surviving.

On her best days, smiling is physically difficult and painful. On her worst, she bleeds through cracked skin, suffers innumerable infections, and has near constant pain. Hot weather (plentiful in Retalhuleu) is physically dangerous to her as she dehydrates rapidly and sunshine makes her skin dry and crack even more.

Medical treatment of her condition is mostly supportive. There is no cure, and few medications exist to help treat the disease. Those drugs that do exist in the United States are experimental, ruinously expensive – even by our standards – and are unavailable in Guatemala.

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The “Happy Home”

Dr. Gilberto Rolando Morales, an old friend of AMEDICAusa and the director of the Hospital Nacional de Retalhuleu, worked with the the local social services to find a suitable home for Pascuala. They finally found her a spot in a Hogar ( home in Spanish, but in this context a combination of a foster care, orphanage and day care center) in the cooler highlands of Guatemala.   Casa Hogar Feliz, (the House of the Happy Home) a Norwegian run orphanage in Sololá had the room and staff that could care for her, but lacked the special skin creams and nutritional support needed for her continued care.

When AMEDICAusa was asked for assistance, we simply couldn’t refuse. Acquiring the necessary salves, vitamins and other supplies in the U.S., we brought them down to Guatemala and a new mission was born. Our Vice President, Silvana Ayuso, put together a team of volunteers and armed with toys, clothing, personal toiletries and even piñatas, brought not only six months of medical supplies to Pascualita, but a little bit of Christmas to all the children of the hogar.

It might not be an ground breaking effort – it won’t fix hunger, alleviate Guatemala’s poverty or even provide a cure for her underlying disease – but if it helps make Pascualita’s life just a little bit better, a little bit easier, we consider it a great success.

If you would like to help AMEDICAusa aid the poor, indigenous and forgotten children of Guatemala please donate here.

AMEDICAusa volunteers bring a little Christmas to Pascualita and Hogar Feliz in Sololá, Guatemala

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AMEDICAusa, inc. is an I.R.S. 501(C)(3) registered charity, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland.

We are always looking for volunteers who wish to help in Guatemala. Get the details here.

Donating to AMEDICAusa ‘s ongoing programs is easy. Get the details here.

The post When One Child Grabs Your Heart appeared first on AMEDICAusa.

]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/when-one-child-grabs-your-heart/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/amedicausa-receives-humanitarian-award-from-guatemala/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/amedicausa-receives-humanitarian-award-from-guatemala/#respond Fri, 07 Oct 2016 15:37:38 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=1016   Humbled and Proud of Award “This was a complete surprise and I am humbled by the award.” said Brown. ” I knew nothing about it until the ceremony had begun. I am, of course, proud of the work we do and all of the donors and volunteers who make…

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AMEDICAusa President Neale Brown receives the Monja Blanca Medal from Guatemala Minister of Defense, Maj. Gen. Williams Mansilla Fernandez.

AMEDICAusa Receives Guatemala’s Highest Civilian Award  

GUATEMALA CITY–  The Monja Blanca Medal was presented today to AMEDICAusa President Neale Brown. The award ceremony followed the conclusion of the organization’s annual FIre and Rescue Training School in Guatemala. The week long school brings together both firefighters and military rescue specialists from around the country to train in fire and rescue techniques. Provided in partnership with North Carolina’s REDS Team, the program enjoys wide support from both the military and fire service communities.

The medal, named for the national flower of Guatemala, is also a prestigious military decoration within the armed forces. It is awarded to those who provide exceptional humanitarian service to the people of Guatemala. Previous recipients have included Mexico’s Special Technical Rescue Team, members of CONRED (the Guatemalan Disaster Relief agency) and Officers of the military’s Unidad Humanitaria y Rescate (UHR) technical rescue team.

AMEDICAusa was recognized for their work in medical care, education, and disaster relief and training throughout Guatemala. Both Neale Brown and the Members of the REDS Team also received individual awards and certificates from the Ministry of Defense in recognition of their efforts on behalf of the people of Guatemala.

Neale Brown instructing firefighters in Guatemala (REDS Team Photo)

 

Humbled and Proud of Award

“This was a complete surprise and I am humbled by the award.” said Brown. ” I knew nothing about it until the ceremony had begun. I am, of course, proud of the work we do and all of the donors and volunteers who make it possible. Without the people who make it all work, like the REDS Team, we would not be able to accomplish what we have. Our job now is to continue to earn the honor every day.”

AMEDICAusa provides aid in three main areas. Besides working with the firefighters of Guatemala as part of their disaster relief efforts, they also work to provide medical care and educational support to the poor and indigenous peoples of the country. For the week after the ceremony, Brown and AMEDICAusa volunteers travelled to several different locations in Guatemala, distributing donated equipment and meeting with a variety of local officials.

Silvana Ayuso receives Monja Blanca Award

This is the second time that members of AMEDICAusa have been recognized by Guatemala for their efforts. AMEDICAusa Vice President, Silvana Ayuso, also received the award of the Monja Blanca in 2015 for her long and continued work on behalf of the people of Guatemala.

 

AMEDICAusa, inc. is an I.R.S. 501(C)(3) registered charity, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland.

We are always looking for volunteers who wish to help in Guatemala. Get the details here.

Donating to AMEDICAusa ‘s ongoing programs is easy. Get the details here.

The post AMEDICAusa Receives Guatemalan Humanitarian Award appeared first on AMEDICAusa.

]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/amedicausa-receives-humanitarian-award-from-guatemala/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/amedicausa-brings-medicine-to-guatemala-hospital/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/amedicausa-brings-medicine-to-guatemala-hospital/#respond Wed, 18 May 2016 14:59:29 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=683 Hospital Nacional de Retalhuleu, Guatemala- AMEDICAusa, inc. is an I.R.S. 501(C)(3) registered charity, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland. We are always looking for volunteers who wish to help in Guatemala. Get the details here. Donating to AMEDICAusa ‘s ongoing programs is easy. Get the details here.   Nuestro Diario, Guatemala – 5/18/2016 HOSPITAL RECEIVES DONATION…

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Hospital Nacional de Retalhuleu, Guatemala-

Unimpressive, overstuffed, black plastic bags, the kind usually reserved for yard debris, were delivered to the National Hospital of Retalhuleu, Guatemala today. Rather than being deposited with the trash, these bags were wholeheartedly welcomed by the Physicians and staff of the hospital.

The national health system of Guatemala is the primary source of medical care for the impoverished and indigenous people of this Central America nation.  It has been hard pressed to keep up with demand and shortages of medicine and supplies have been serious and widespread. The Hospital at Retalhuleu has been particularly hard hit by these shortages.

 In this case, the plastic bags are filled with medicine and supplies to help ease the shortage of necessities at the hospital.

 

AMEDICAusa volunteers arrived here in an SUV filled with these supplies.

 “Gathering donations from pharmacies, physicians and suppliers around Guatemala was hard work “said AMEDICAusa Vice President Silvana Ayuso. “but very much worth it. Every patient we help is important.”

Normally, AMEDICAusa’s focus is on the more rural areas of Guatemala. 90% of the country’s doctors are practicing in the major urban areas, leaving the rural, poor and indigenous chronically underserved.

“This was an important donation, and actually in line with our rural focus.” said Neale Brown, President of AMEDICAusa. 

“Seriously ill people from the rural villages must often be referred to the National Hospitals in the larger towns and cities. If they can make their way – and it is difficult and expensive for them to do so – to the hospital, it is obviously better if there is medicine and supplies to actually care for them.” Said Brown.

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AMEDICAusa, inc. is an I.R.S. 501(C)(3) registered charity, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland.

We are always looking for volunteers who wish to help in Guatemala. Get the details here.

Donating to AMEDICAusa ‘s ongoing programs is easy. Get the details here.

 

Nuestro Diario, Guatemala – 5/18/2016

Nuestro Diario, Guatemala -5/18/2016

HOSPITAL RECEIVES DONATION (translated from the Spanish)

The charity AMEDICAusa delivered a shipment of medicines for patients in the National Hospital in Retalhuleu.
The contribution was made by Silvana Ayuso, Vice President of the Organization, who explained that the drugs were donated by Guatemalan doctors.
The batch of medicines including antibiotics, anti-inflammatory and spasmolytic medicines, among others, said Ayuso.
For her part, Wendy Méndez, responsible for the pharmacy of the Medical Center, said that the donation will help to alleviate the crisis that affects all hospitals.
“It will be well used in the different units,” she said.
Some patients came to thank [the volunteers] for the help.

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]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/amedicausa-brings-medicine-to-guatemala-hospital/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/busy-week-amedicausa/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/busy-week-amedicausa/#respond Thu, 21 Apr 2016 13:38:42 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=649 AMEDICAusa‘s Vice President Silvana Ayuso is always up to something good…this week it’s a series of meetings with the new Guatemalan Minister of Health Dr. Alfonso Cabrera, Minister of Agriculture Mario Méndez, Minister of Rural Development Jose Moreno and the US Embassy Civil Affairs team to see how our programs might best help in…

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]]> AMEDICAusa‘s Vice President Silvana Ayuso is always up to something good…this week it’s a series of meetings with the new Guatemalan Minister of Health Dr. Alfonso Cabrera, Minister of Agriculture Mario Méndez, Minister of Rural Development Jose Moreno and the US Embassy Civil Affairs team to see how our programs might best help in Guatemala.  Next on her agenda is the Defense Ministry to co-ordinate arrangements for our Fire and Rescue training mission in October with the REDS Team.

AMEDICAusa’s Silvana Ayuso with Minister of Health, Dr. Alfonso Cabrera, and the US Embassy Civil Affairs team

AMEDICAusa’s Silvana Ayuso with Minister of Agriculture, Mario Méndez, and the US Embassy Civil Affairs team

AMEDICAusa’s Silvana Ayuso, Guatemala Minister of Rural Development, Jose Moreno, and the US Embassy Civil Affairs Team

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]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/busy-week-amedicausa/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/big-day-amedicausa-tzununa/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/big-day-amedicausa-tzununa/#respond Wed, 09 Mar 2016 17:47:50 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=548    

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Guatemala President Jimmy Morales and AMEDICAusa Vice President Silvana Ayuso meet in Tzununá

It was a big day today in the village of Tzununá. Newly elected Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales visited the small mountain town while AMEDICAusa was on hand to deliver medical supplies and medications to the local health clinic. Tzununá is one of several areas in which AMEDICAusa operates and discussions between AMEDICAusa’s Silvana Ayuso and President Morales were very helpful.

Silvana with children of Tzununá

Tzununá is located on the shores of Lake Atitlán in the Department of Sololá, near the center of the country. The villagers are the indigenous Kaqchikel Maya who live in extremely impoverished conditions in one of the most beautiful parts of Central America.

 

 

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]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/big-day-amedicausa-tzununa/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/womans-health-pre-natal-care/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/womans-health-pre-natal-care/#respond Fri, 08 Jan 2016 05:16:09 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=500 AMEDICAusa , in partnership with The Cleft Foundation, arranged a tour of several rural villages where over 1000 Maya women received prenatal education, vitamins, food and clothing.

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La Prensa Article 1-8-2016

AMEDICAusa , in partnership with The Cleft Foundation, arranged a tour of several rural villages where over 1000 Maya women received prenatal education, vitamins, food and clothing.

The post Woman’s Health and Pre-Natal Care appeared first on AMEDICAusa.

]]> https://www.amedicausa.org/news/womans-health-pre-natal-care/feed/ 0 https://www.amedicausa.org/news/502/ https://www.amedicausa.org/news/502/#respond Thu, 10 Dec 2015 05:25:25 +0000 http://www.amedicausa.org/?post_type=news&p=502     AMEDICAusa leadership met with the staff and leadership of Fundación Castillo Cordova in Tzununá, Sololá to tour the medical clinic and the Foundation’s projects there. While a tentative agreement has been reached between the two NGO’s regarding a partnership in Tzununá, we are waiting for final approval from the Ministry of…

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Medical Clinic at Tzununá

 

 

AMEDICAusa President Neale Brown and Vice President Edwardo Castillo of Fundación Castillo Cordova meeting in Tzununá

AMEDICAusa leadership met with the staff and leadership of Fundación Castillo Cordova in Tzununá, Sololá to tour the medical clinic and the Foundation’s projects there. While a tentative agreement has been reached between the two NGO’s regarding a partnership in Tzununá, we are waiting for final approval from the Ministry of Health.

 

 

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