In May we had a phenomenal week of work in the mountains around Camotan. Our team from the US met with our Guatemalan team in Guatemala City as we typically do and then proceeded to Camotan. It was a brutally hot week. Many residents noted it had never been that hot there before. It got gradually hotter that week each day. With the humidity in this part of the world, it was difficult to be outside. By the end of the week, schools closed in the rural areas of the mountains and we had to shorten our last day of work.
Dave Nitsch, MPH, PhD (L) working in the “pharmacy” set up in the rural mountain schools
Despite the heat, we were able to see about 150 patients each day. We took lots of breaks to get through. But as usual it was tremendously rewarding. We had volunteers for Pennsylvania and Colorado working with our full time clinic staff. Our physicians and practitioners from the US enjoy teaching Guatemalan medical residents. We have many tools at our disposal that are hard to come by in Guatemala: ultrasound machines, EKG machine, point of care blood testing and a full pharmacy. These things are very rare in Guatemala and especially uncommon in such a remote area. Camotan clinic has become a desirable location for Guatemalan medical residents because they have these tools at their disposal!
Dr. Joel Strohecker working with Dr. Jose Montero, Guatemalan medical resident, on a pregnant patient
We did multiple days of remote mountain clinic visits. We were in villages an hour away from Camotan on rough dirt roads, villages where there is no medical care.
Dr. Gisselle Espana and Dr. Jose Montero: Guatemalan medical residents, working with patients in a remote mountain village
We try to visit villages at least once a year. There are nearly 40 small villages (called aldeas) all through the mountains around Camotan. They are informal areas usually just named due to a cluster of huts and a school house (we work out of the school houses as is seen in above photos). Sometimes there is a remote mountain health center. We work in these centers when we can (like a new one below). These centers are staffed by 2 nurses each day and serve their communities by giving vaccinations and child checks but not much else.
Dr. Strohecker (L) and Dr. Toledo (R) with Juan Hernandez, a patient cared for by volunteers and Camotan Clinic for over 10 years after an accident as a child where he lost his arms
Of course, patient care and bringing health to the people in and around Camotan is our big goal. And as we grow we are doing that little by little. However a tremendous benefit is the camaraderie and joy we have just being together. We laugh together, eat together and work on difficult cases together. There is purpose and fulfillment in two cultures coming together for a common cause. We work hard. But we love to spend time with each other after a day of work.
Work day done, our medical team spends time at Camotan Clinic talking, debriefing and sharing stories from the day
Dinner time can often last 2 hours or more as we talk, laugh and and enjoy each other’s company
Thank you so much for reading!