What began as a way of taking care of our patients during the pandemic has evolved into an entirely new program. Initially, it started in June with remote telemedicine “housecalls” as Guatemala began to emerge from complete lockdown and has grown into a weekly onsite program with volunteers from seven of our Village Medical Clinic Teams.

Initially, the clinics were 100% remote, featuring a Guatemalan physician and a U.S. physician, organized and facilitated by our Village Medical Clinic Director, Felipe Gutierrez, and team. Following these consults, we delivered medicines and provided follow-up care.

Partnering with Xela Aid

We began an onsite program with Xela Aid, working with their staff to outfit a ‘safe clinic’ and the use of a projector screen for better visibility. The initial two-day clinic held in September was staffed by Dr. Phil Johnson (Johnson Team), Dr. Bob Wells (Wells Team), Dr. Vicki Martinez (Chenault Team), and Dr. Heather Diaz (Robinson Team). We continue to expand practitioner participation, with members from the Tysse-AGO, Thompson, Delk Teams, and others.

Although some patients were initially shy when they began their consult with a doctor 3,000 miles away on a video screen, “[T]hey warmed up right away, probably because Felipe and Tagni were so professional and so kind with the patients,” said Joe Austin (Team Tysse-AGO).

This new program is an avenue by which we can increase our continuum of care into the future. It is a way by which we can deepen current and develop new relationships to leverage impact in general medical care, surgical pre-screening and follow-up, and quality surgical referral assessments. And, it is a way through which we might increase our presence in more remote areas to expand and complement the dedicated work of our Guatemalan volunteers.