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Why?
Can you imagine the joy of sight that a first pair of glasses brings, the relief of being rid of a toothache that has lasted for months, or the freedom that accompanies a child’s first steps after clubfoot surgery? So many things we take for granted are luxuries in other parts of the world. For over a decade, M.E.D.I.C.O. has been dedicated to making these types of hopes and dreams into reality.
M.E.D.I.C.O. has a primary focus and presence in Honduras, one of the Western Hemisphere’s poorest countries. More than two thirds of Hondurans live below the international poverty line, a mere $1.25 per day, and almost half the population is categorized as living in extreme poverty, unimaginably a figure of less than $1.00 per day. The number and the magnitude of problems that confronts a society with this level of poverty are staggering.
Almost all facets of Honduran life are affected. When compared to a country like the United States, the differences in the standard of living are striking. This is especially evident when you learn about the quality and the access to health services to which most Hondurans are accustomed.
Malnutrition, infectious diseases and untreated medical problems are so prevalent that many Hondurans never know what it is like to be healthy and feel well. When one reviews healthcare statistics, you realize just how profound and disturbing this disparity is. Rare illnesses become common and common illnesses have much graver consequences.
Chronic malnutrition affects over a third of all children. The problem is so serious that even the most advanced cases are often not addressed. Respiratory infections and diarrhea, treatable medical problems, are the number one killers of children under the age of five. Maternal mortality is thirty times greater than in the United States. Trained personnel are present in only 42% of all deliveries and prenatal care is almost nonexistent. In fact, more than a third of the population does not have access to the most basic of medical care. Because healthcare services are so marginal, even modest efforts are able to achieve meaningful gains.
On one of my first trip to Honduras, I went to a small rural community named San Antonio. I remember speaking with a young mother who had recently lost a second child to dysentery. In communities like San Antonio, physicians are often only accessible once or twice a year when M.E.D.I.C.O. or a similar group visits. Unfortunately, with tears in her eyes, the mother told me that M.E.D.I.C.O. had again arrived a month too late. I still experience a knot in my stomach when I think of this woman’s loss. It is nearly impossible to conceive of something like this occurring in the United States.
Each time I visit Honduras I am amazed and deeply saddened by the considerable impact of diseases that are so easily treated in more developed countries. The grief and sense of helplessness that overshadows the lives of so many families in the aftermath of events like the one described above is heart wrenching and almost unfathomable. In Honduras and similar locations throughout the world, limited resources and inadequate access to health care plague children and their families on a daily basis.
We hope that you share our enthusiasm for this night’s event as well as the Adopt a Village project which it will help sustain. It is a worthy cause and we thank you for your interest and support.
Frank Duggan, M.D.
Chairman: Le Bal Masqué
M.E.D.I.C.O. has a primary focus and presence in Honduras, one of the Western Hemisphere’s poorest countries. More than two thirds of Hondurans live below the international poverty line, a mere $1.25 per day, and almost half the population is categorized as living in extreme poverty, unimaginably a figure of less than $1.00 per day. The number and the magnitude of problems that confronts a society with this level of poverty are staggering.
Almost all facets of Honduran life are affected. When compared to a country like the United States, the differences in the standard of living are striking. This is especially evident when you learn about the quality and the access to health services to which most Hondurans are accustomed.
Malnutrition, infectious diseases and untreated medical problems are so prevalent that many Hondurans never know what it is like to be healthy and feel well. When one reviews healthcare statistics, you realize just how profound and disturbing this disparity is. Rare illnesses become common and common illnesses have much graver consequences.
Chronic malnutrition affects over a third of all children. The problem is so serious that even the most advanced cases are often not addressed. Respiratory infections and diarrhea, treatable medical problems, are the number one killers of children under the age of five. Maternal mortality is thirty times greater than in the United States. Trained personnel are present in only 42% of all deliveries and prenatal care is almost nonexistent. In fact, more than a third of the population does not have access to the most basic of medical care. Because healthcare services are so marginal, even modest efforts are able to achieve meaningful gains.
On one of my first trip to Honduras, I went to a small rural community named San Antonio. I remember speaking with a young mother who had recently lost a second child to dysentery. In communities like San Antonio, physicians are often only accessible once or twice a year when M.E.D.I.C.O. or a similar group visits. Unfortunately, with tears in her eyes, the mother told me that M.E.D.I.C.O. had again arrived a month too late. I still experience a knot in my stomach when I think of this woman’s loss. It is nearly impossible to conceive of something like this occurring in the United States.
Each time I visit Honduras I am amazed and deeply saddened by the considerable impact of diseases that are so easily treated in more developed countries. The grief and sense of helplessness that overshadows the lives of so many families in the aftermath of events like the one described above is heart wrenching and almost unfathomable. In Honduras and similar locations throughout the world, limited resources and inadequate access to health care plague children and their families on a daily basis.
We hope that you share our enthusiasm for this night’s event as well as the Adopt a Village project which it will help sustain. It is a worthy cause and we thank you for your interest and support.
Frank Duggan, M.D.
Chairman: Le Bal Masqué