Healthcare & Special Needs
Doctors and Clinics
Disease among the children of rural Nicaragua is almost overwhelming. Of the families we visit, nearly every one has a severely sick child. Illnesses are complicated by malnutrition, which greatly weakens the immune system.
We help fund healthcare clinics where local doctors provide medical treatment as well as needed medicines to thousands who would otherwise never have access to medical care. Many times these “clinics” are set up in the community meal centers or schools.
We also fund the transportation costs for critically ill children living in remote regions who require hospitalization, usually located several hours from the village.
Full-time health directors also administer a parasite-control program along with chlorine distribution to treat drinking water.
Special Medical Needs
From natural disasters, such as a hurricane and a mudslide that consumed an entire village, to the needs of special children who have severe disabilities, there are thousands of stricken children waiting for help.
Especially in the mountainous Matagalpa region, we find many children among these poorest of the poor who have special needs—Carlos, born without a urinary opening (refer to our Fall 2009 Newsletter Carlos: A Boy Out Of Time ) . . . or little Diana, unable to walk due to rheumatoid arthritis, whose family lived under a tarp. For each child we treat, thousands more suffer and wait for help. Please help us meet these special needs and “Bring Hope to the Children.”
