April Update from Amelia, the Casa Guatemala Health Promoter

Sharing the Dream in Guatemala provides the salary for Amelia, the health promoter at Casa Guatemala.  As the health promoter, Amelia is responsible for health care for all of the children at Casa Guatemala, as well as the surrounding villages.  Her care is essential for the wellbeing of the children and the surrounding communities. Read her April report!

Amelia's April Report

Amelia is the first point of health care for the children at Casa Guatemala, as well as community members from the surrounding villages.  As the health care provider, Amelia is responsible for everything from administering first aid to accompanying patients to the nearest public clinic down the river for more serious cases.  In April, Amelia spent a lot of time administering first aid to the children who suffered from minor accidents.  Children can play rough sometimes, and there are lots of scrapes and cuts to be treated.  Amelia is also responsible for treating common ailments, such as stomach aches and ear infections. When a treatment is given to a patient, Amelia works with the heads of the houses at Casa Guatemala to ensure that they understand instructions and that the treatment is being carried out as prescribed. 

Amelia treating a patient

Part of Amelia's job is to ensure that not just the curative needs of the children at Casa Guatemala are met, but that preventive measure are taken to ensure a better overall health.  In April, Amelia helped to host a workshop for all of the school children at Casa Guatemala.  The workshop was given by students studying medicine at a local university and focused on the importance of handwashing.  Amelia also gave a workshop to the children at Casa Guatemala in April on viral illnesses, such as colds and chicken pox.  The workshop helped the students to identify the causes of the illnesses,  symptoms, treatment, and prevention.  Amelia was able to tie in this workshop with the handwashing workshop given earlier in the month by the medical students.  

The students from a local university after giving a workshop on handwashing

In April, Amelia also helped to apply flouride to all of the children and staff members at Casa Guatemala.  Amelia works with the students and staff at Casa Guatemala to promote good dental hygiene amongst the students, and flouride is an important part of those good dental practices.

Applying flouride to the school children at Casa Guatemala

The children at Casa Guatemala had a special treat in April- a trip to the Castillo San Felipe, a Spanish colonial fort at the mouth of Lake Izabal and the Rio Dulce.  Amelia helped to prepare the first aid kit and chaperoned the students on the field trip. 

Field trip to the Castillo San Felipe

​Please help us to support this life-saving work by making a donation to Sharing the Dream for Amelia's salary. https://www.sharingthedream.org/donate.html. For $20, you can sponsor a day of Amelia’s important work, or for $400 you can sponsor a full month of health care.