Santa Maria Cahabon, Alta Verapaz 2023

This year the humanitarian mission took place in the town of Santa Maria Cahabon, Alta Verapaz August 7-11th. The mission was a success! We had the schools of Medicine, Dentistry, Biological Chemistry, Nutrition, Pharmacy and Veterinary from Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala participate along with family and friends. We also had the pleasure to have Dra. Terraza and her team join us this year to provide ophthalmological consults and treatment.

*Nuestra ultima mision humanitaria se llevo acabo en Santa Maria Cahabon, Alta Verapaz este Agosto 7-11, 2023. El proyecto fue un exito! Las facultades de Medicna, Odontologia, Quimica Biologica, Nutricion, Farmacia y Veterinaria de la Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala fueron participes de la jornada. En conjunto con nuestros voluntarios, esta vez contamos con la ayuda de la Dra. Terraza y su equipo quienes impartieron consultas y tratamiento oftalmologico.

Veterinary

For the first time in our mission trips, we had the Veterinary school of USAC join us. Two years ago Dr. Coronado’s grandson, Daniel who is 10, had the thought of providing food for the stray dogs of the town of Cahabon. He also shared with the association the idea of providing aid to the animals in the area. After much planning, this year, Veterinary formed part of our health initiative. We are so grateful to the students and faculty that joined us in providing vaccines for dogs and cats, as well as knowledge on raising, feeding and maintaining livestock. Many people in Cahabon depend on animal husbandry as a means of income. We look forward to having volunteers and professionals in Veterinary join us in the upcoming trips.

*Por primera vez en la jornada humanitaria, tuvimos el placer de que la facultad de Veterinaria de la USAC nos acompanara. Hace dos anos el nieto del Dr. Coronado, Daniel quien tiene 10 anos de edad, llevo comida para los perros sin hogar en Cahabon. Daniel, compartio con la asociacion la idea de proveer ayuda y atencion para los animales de Cahabon. En esta jornada, finalmente su idea cobro vida! Estamos infinitamente agradecios a los estudiantes y profesionales que formaron parte de la jornada de vacunacion para perros y gatos, y compartieron sus conocimientos en crianza, alimentacion y mantenimiento de animales de granja y para consumo humano. Mucha gente de la poblacion en Santa Maria Cahabon se dedica a la crianza de animales de granja para consumo humano como forma de ingresos para su hogar. Esperamos que podamos contar con voluntarios y profesionales en el area de veterinaria en los proximos proyectos.

Ophtalmology

In past healthcare trips we have had Optometrists join us and we have seen the dire need of the people to have diagnoses, treatment, referral and general understanding of their eye health. This year, Dra. Terraza who is an Opthamologist, and her team, were able to help over 300 patients who needed treatment, referrals and diagnoses. We can not put in words the impact that she had on people’s well being during such a short period of time. MVA is so grateful for her participation and hopeful to have her join in the future health missions.

THANKS DRA. TERRAZA!

*En los proyectos humanitarios pasados hemos contado con optometristas quienes han podidio evaluar la necesidad de la gente de la poblacion en Alta Verapaz quienes necesitan tratamiento y entendimiento de su salud ocular. Este ano, la Dra. Terraza quien es Oftalmologa de profesion, y su equipo, puedieron ayudar a mas de 300 pacientes quienes necesitaban tratamiento, consulta y diagnostico de los ojos. No podemos expresar en palabras el impacto que ella tuvo en la salud de la gente en Cahabon durante este corto tiempo de 3 dias. La Asociacion Miguel Vargas esta muy agradecida por su participacion y esperamos poder contar con su presencia en las futuras misiones. Gracias Dra!

School Building and Water Captation Project in Village of Secacao

#2! This year we carried out our second rain water captation project in the village of Secacao. The families that live in this area do not have access to portable water. With the help of Henkel, Guatemala and our volunteers, we built a school house, cement floors and a cement foundation with two water tanks to capture rain water for the families that live here. A huge thank you to our friend and volunteer, Craig Cleaveland for joining us in providing the people of Secacao better hygiene and education. We are also so grateful to: Hans Gonzalez, Edin Coy, and Lic. Lorena Flores, for their indispensable help in this project.

*Numero 2! Este ano se llevo acabo el segundo proyecto de captacion de agua de la Asociacion. Esta vez, estuvimos en el Parcelamiento de Secacao donde las familias no teniean acceso a agua potable. Con la ayuda de Henkel, Guatemala, y nuestros voluntarios, contruimos la escuela local del parcelamiento, pusimos piso de cemento, y se elaboro el sistema de captacion de agua pluvial. Agradecemos infinitamente a nuestro amigo y voluntario Craig Cleaveland por acompanarnos en esta ardua mision y ayudarnos a proveer educacion y mejor higiene a las personas de Secacao. La Asociacion Miguel Vargas extiende una agradecimineto a Hans Gonzales, Edin Coy y la Licencidad Lorena Flores por su ayuda indispensable en la elaboracion y ejecucion de este proyecto.

Finally, we would like to recognize the following people in being part of the mission with donating, and volunteering their time and knowledge for the well being of the people of Santa Maria Cahabon.

*Finalmente, quisieramos agradecer y reconocer a las siguientes personas, asociaciones y participes en la mision humanitaria por su tiempo, donaciones y conocimiento impartido para la salud y la educacion de la gente en Santa Maria Cahabon.

Laboratorio Qualipharm

Lic. Rudy Marroquin Rosales- Hospital Materno INfantil Juan Pable II

Organizacion de estudiantes de Quimica FArmaceutica (OEQF)

Novus Diagnostics

Labindustrias

Licda. Claudia Vargas de Meneses, QB Directora de CArelab

Organizacion de EStudiantes de Quimica Biologica (OEQB)

Licda. Liliana Vides directora de EDC de la Facultad de Ciencias Quimicas y Farmacia, USAC.

Organizacion de Estudiantes de Nutricion

Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia

Asociacion de Estudiantes de Veterinaria y Zootecnia

Henkel

The many friends, family and volunteers who joined us in the mission trip, everyone who helped us by donating and sharing our work, and especially Dr. Hugo Coronado, DDS for his vision of providing cost-free health care to people who need it most, without whom we would not be able to help so many people.

We look forward to more humanitarian aid missions where we are able to contribute to the improvement of human health, education and society with your help.

*A los amigos, familia y voluntarios que nos acompanaron en esta mision, a todos los que donaron y ayudaron a compartir nuestra labor. Especialmente agradecemos al Dr. Hugo Coronado, DDS por su vision en proveer ayuda sin costo a las personas que mas lo necesitan.

Esperamos tener mas misiones humanitarias en el futuro donde podamos contibuir y mejorar la salud, educacion y nuestra sociedad.

Volcan de Fuego Fundraiser and Service

We want to express our thanks to all those who contributed to our fundraiser this last June for the victims of the volcano eruption in Guatemala. Two weeks after the volcano erupted we were able to take the money raised down with us and help several families as well as hospitals with your donations. Following is a detailed description of what we used the funds for.

The day we arrived in Guatemala we immediately made contacts in the affected areas with people who were volunteering at the fire department and were placing families who had lost their possessions in different shelters and homes. We assessed several families’ situations of loss and need by visiting with them to determine how we could best be of service.

We met a family of six who were relocated to the house of the local mayor. They had lost everything they had due to the eruption, including the jobs of the grandfather and his son. Later that day, we met with another family of 16 who had five children of elementary school age. None of the children had the required supplies to attend school. They also had a diabetic grandfather who needed medicine. The women of the family had no clothing that fit them. We observed as they cooked lunch for the sixteen members of the family on a one-burner camp stove. The last family we met was a family of 20 members who had 11 children. They had been given an empty house with cots and some blankets. We spoke with some of the women in the family and they told us they were so devastated by losing all their belongings but that they still had family in zone zero. They commented that the children were not used to living in a suburb, they needed to be outside in the fields and that it was hard for them all to stay inside the house. We offered help and their reply was “This isn’t our home, we just want to go back and live where we were.”

During the following two days, the Association organized rides to buy and transport goods from the city to the affected areas. The drive is about two hours and with all the supplies, we needed big, spacious cars with four-wheel drive. We were able to buy the following for these families:

Full grocery lists including: milk, oil, Ensure, water, butter, different meats, vegetables, diapers, toilet paper, etc.

Four lists of school supplies that included over 50 items for each child.

Socks

Underwear for 10 women

Medicine for diabetes, high blood pressure, cough and cold

Vitamins for children and adults

The fourth day in Guatemala we contacted a friend in Antigua who told us about a family of 10 whom he knew through work with the grandfather. Our friend asked us to come and meet them, to hear more about their situation. During our meeting, we found out they had lost their house, jobs, all personal belongings, but all family members had survived. The grandfather and one of his daughters recounted how the eruption materials reached their house and that they were able to flee just in time. One of the girls in the family, a 16 year-old named Ofelia, ran to save her 3 year-old neighbor as they were escaping. However, the hot gases and lava reached them and covered the little girl. Ofelia, had to let go

of the 3 year-old, and she relates, “She got too hot; I couldn’t hold her because I was burning my hand.” Ofelia’s feet and ankles were burned by lava and she was currently under care at the hospital. We immediately made plans to help the whole family with things they needed in the new place were they were living.

We would like to point out that our Association arrived three weeks after the disaster, and that before our arrival, the Guatemalan government had organized shelters for the homeless. Several other organizations were receiving donations of food, clothing, and other basic needs to take to these shelters. The donations given by the Guatemalan people to help their affected brothers and sisters were massive. There were hangars filled to the roof with things for the needy, and truck loads were being taken to the shelters.

When we arrived in Guatemala, shelters had been closed to the public and were being managed by government authorities and the military. The people in the shelters were not receiving the help that had been sent, and in some places they were not allowed to go out of the shelter in which they were stationed. To avoid any type of problem, our Association determined it would be best to reach families outside of the shelters, and outside of zone zero, where we would be allowed to make one-on-one contact.

On day four of our trip, we worked on obtaining a list of household items for Ofelia and her family. These items included blankets, shoes, clothes, some toys, a table and chairs, cooking pans and utensils and pantry items. Edinhart Realty and Design also donated money in cash to the family.

On day five, we were able to make a contact with a medical representative who took us to the public hospital in Escuintla. Here, we talked to the Head of the burned victim’s unit and gave them several boxes of medicine. We were also able to visit with various patients who were being treated for burns, and observed as nurses changed bandages on three young boys. The experience was heartbreaking and shocking. The doctor in charge of the unit at the time related to us how federal regulations made it hard to obtain pain medication, as well as proper treatment for the victims. We left the hospital with a broader view of the situation, as well as a great feeling of duty to do keep helping the victims. We are currently working on finding special beds for drainage and sterile bandage changes for the burned unit. The process is long due to shipping regulations and paperwork to transport special hospital beds into the country.

On our last two days in the country we delivered all the things we had bought for the families each met. We had help from family and friends who let us pack their trucks and vans with all of the supplies. We traveled to Amatitlan and Escuintla early in the morning. We visited with two families in Amatitlan and delivered what we purchased for each of them. We also learned that one of the families we had visited on the first days, had decided to move back closer to ground zero and to keep looking for their missing relatives.

Later that day we made a stop at a meetinghouse of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Escuintla, where they had a shelter set up for 150 people. The church members and other community volunteers had cooked, cleaned and entertained the refugees every day since the disaster. We were able to help by giving activity books to the children, making long lasting name tags for volunteers, and

by delivering cleaning supplies and medications to their pharmacy. It was amazing to see the work of the volunteers that day. 20 women prepared lunch for 200 people and served them all. We also observed their afternoon of exercise and entertainment provided by the State University and the Red Cross. We conversed with the medical personnel and were able to give them some of our donated medicine. We loved being able to share time with other volunteers in the real spirit of giving and aiding those in need.

At the end of the day we travelled close to ground zero to deliver supplies to the last family. Ofelia was so happy when we gave her and her family the things we had purchased for them.

The day was long and productive and we were beyond grateful for all the friends, contacts and family members that offered their time and resources in benefit of the people affected by the volcano eruption.

We know that much is yet to be done and would like to express our sincere thanks to all who donated, friends, family, Edinhart Realty and Design, Melisa Spolini, The Fresno Bee, and all those who continue to support us with your prayers and love as we carry on our service.

check out our feature in the Fresno Bee Newspaper!

https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article213297944.html?fbclid=IwAR26zGOetwr0xmsc-fDrRiU_5rfujNW3oakbC71lRmOnOYThvTSQHn391p0

March 2018 Report

We were finally able to review all of our data for the March 2018 health trip to Tzalamtun, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Here’s an overview of what happened:

Our mission for this trip was to bring healthcare through physical examinations, consultations, dental work, and administration of medicine. 

As always, none of our work would have been made possible without the help of local teachers and community leaders. All volunteers were transported to the remote village through trucks and gasoline donated by one of the teachers of the local school. Each round trip was about two hours. Other teachers from the elementary school helped to organize the flow of the project, and also found volunteers from the local high school who helped to sterilize and organize materials. Members of IMPRA (Instituto Mixto Privado Ricardo Arjona), another nearby high school, aided as translators of the Q’eqchi language for those of us that cannot speak it, which is most of us! Additional volunteers included Registered Nurses who also served as translators, but also took vitals and helped with patient flow. Finally, and most incredibly of all, the parents of the local students raised funds, which provided a lunch for all volunteers for the three days of the campaign. 

The medical workup included nutrition consults, tests for parasites from stool and urine samples, physical examinations, and consults. Dental workup included examinations, and either extractions and/or fillings for affected teeth. 

And finally, the most telling part of all, EPIDEMIOLOGY. At the current time, all we have been able to count comes from Medical Charts. At the end of the health mission, most of the Dental Records were lost, but efforts are being made to find them. From the medical data, here is what we found.

Patient total : 430 persons

Nutrion-Related diagnoses: 33%

Including: malnutrition, Protein-caloric malnutrition, underweight, diabetes, obesity, overweight, anorexia, avitaminosis, and dehydration.

Parasites: 27.4%

Including: ascaris lumbricoides, uncinaria, trichuris trichuria, entoamoeba coli, strongyloides, endolimax nana, giardia lamblia, retortamonas, chilomastix, mesnilii, tricomonas, and Charcot-Leyden crystals.

GI tract diagnoses: 18.4%

Including: peptic disease, gastritis, gastric ulcers, diarrhea, intestinal amoebas, nausea, irritable colon syndrome, viral gastroenteritis, abdominal pain, and dysentery. 

Infections and other diagnoses: 15.8%

Including: fever, healthy patient, otalgia, viral infection, bacterial infection, cerumen plug, varicella, eye trauma, epistaxis, vision problems, ear infection, common cold, hernia, Chagas, lipoma, lower extremity ulcer, senescence. 

Musculoskeletal diagnoses: 10.7%

Including: myalgia, muscular spasms, prosthetic pain, back pain, muscular tear, athralgia, lower extremity pain, and gynovial cyst.

Urinary Tract Diagnoses: 10.7%

Including: urinary tract infection, and dysuria. 

Neurological diagnoses: 8.8%

Including: cephalea, dizziness, syncope, Bell’s palsy, neuropathy, blurry vision, convulsions, developmental delay, dysgeusia, and weakness. 

Skin-related diagnoses : 6%

Inlcuding: dermatitis, mycosis, sarcoptosis, impetigo, pruritus, vitiligo, and idiopathic infection. 

Respiratory Tract Diagnoses: 4.4%

Including: upper respiratory infection, lower respiratory infection, acute respiratory infection, pneumonia, COPD, left roncus, pharingoamigdalitis, bronchospasm, and bronchitis.

Ob/Gyn Diagnoses: 4.2%

Including: dysmenorrhea, oligomenorrhea, pregnant, cysts, menopause. 

Circulatory and Cardiovascular Diagnoses: 3.2%

Including: anemia, hypertension, tachycardia, heart murmur, aortic aneurysm, varices, and deep vein thrombosis.

Although these were just quick facts, we expect to publish a complete scientific report here on our website. Once again, a million thank-you’s to all our volunteers, directly from our family, Professor Edin from Tzalamtum Elementary, parents at the school, students from USAC, and the vice mayor of the town who found us all lodging and dinner for the three nights of the campaign.

We hope that this information brings awareness to the needs of the population, and helps us grow as an organization for better and more specialized care.

To all who donated to make this campaign possible, either with time, or monetarily in the United States, WE LOVE YOU AND THANK YOU!

Miguel Vargas Team

our dental clinic where 12 dentists did extractions and fillings

some of the high school students ran the sterilization station

the triage area as patients came in we were able to take vitals and coordinate patient flow to the different areas with the help of these nursing students.

more than 800+ people were able to come in and receive health care

this time, with the help of students and professionals from USAC, we provided nutrition consults, full lab work for patients, medical consults, as well as medicine.

patients were weighed and measured and given nutritional advice as to their daily habits and food intake.

young girl waits to be seen by a doctor with her little brother

kids waiting outside the dental clinics for their parents with one of our board members, ileana.

some of the students' parents who helped organize the patients

we were able to have a full pharmacy because of the donations received. these pharmacists who volunteered their time and skills, kept an inventory and gave prescriptions to the patients, free of cost.

in the school's kitchen, students' parents worked all morning cooking for 60+ people. they gathered funds among them and gave us lunch for three days. it was their way to say thank you. 

Upcoming plan for March 2018 Mission

This march we will once again bring medical and dental help to a village in Cahabon, Alta Verapaz, called Tzalamtun. We have not visited this location before. The village is located 6 km north of Santa Maria Cahabon. There are 348 households, 485 families with a total population of 2,400. Due to the distance from the nearest city, most inhabitants haven’t seen a dentist or received medical treatment in their lives. The elementary school has offered us the building to set up dental and medical clinics. With the help of students and dentists we will perform extractions, amalgam and resin fillings, fluoride applications and dental sealants. Furthermore, with the help of the students and faculty from the college of pharmacy and chemistry from the University of San Carlos de Guatemala we will be able to give the patients lab work including: blood, urine, and stool samples. This will help the doctors have a better understanding in order to give accurate diagnosis and treatment. In addition, this time students from the University’s college of nutrition will help evaluate children and mothers’ nutritional needs.

The funds raised will help us provide medicine, vitamins, antiparasitics, materials, and equipment. The lab work needs chemical reagents which give accurate results and we need to bring them as well. In past projects, we have come across the problem of power outage and it has hindered our ability to provide more help. This time we need to bring portable generators. Funds will additionally cover 60 desks which we will provide for the elementary school “El Rosario.” The school has no means by which to provide a desk to each student, so some children sit on the floor or stand while in class. 

Like we stated in the August 2017 report, we are bringing a water tank system to provide clean filtered water to the village of Villa Nueva Sexan. We need to buy the tank and the pipe system as well as a cement foundation that will hold it. The parents and school children often find themselves walking miles to carry drinking water to their homes in arduous terrain.

In the area of education, last November we started a project with the help of our friend Craig Cleveland and associates from Fresno State University in which we translated two children’s books to the Mayan Dialect of Q’eqchi. Jose Coronado, a member of our board, aided in the translation of the books which were delivered to the children of the Villa Nueva Sexan elementary school. Our goal is to develop a reading habit in the children and their families and create a need for the children to remain in school. With our purpose in mind, the children were provided with solar powered light bulbs. This will allow them to read in their homes at night or when power goes out. This year we would like to further the project, by translating more books and bringing them to the children, as well as using the help of the students from the graduating class of elementary teachers to oversee the project.

We greatly appreciate your donations to bring the much needed help to the children and their families.

Elementary School in Tzalamtun, Cahabon.

elementary school where the association's health clinics will be set up this march 2018.

village of Tzalamtun, Cahabon, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala.