PT Across Settings and Countries

Today was another day full of new experiences and adventures. Our group broke off into several smaller groups and each experienced different aspects of patient care. We worked in multiple areas of the hospital: outpatient, the nursery, young adults, and older adults. We worked with the Guatemalan therapists to problem-solve seating problems with the wheelchairs, possible splinting ideas, and methods of handling. While several people in our group are proficient in Spanish, others are not and were forced to learn other ways to communicate for successful treatment and education!

A few stories from the day:

Three of our group worked in the nursery. During the first hour of treatment, communication consisted of gestures and very broken Spanish. Later in the morning, the group met a French nurse that spoke Spanish and a little English. Well, someone in our group spoke French. Thus, through the three languages, we were able to communicate with the therapist about important activities for the success of the child. The child left an impression on the students that worked with him this morning. He was two years old, but his appearance and motor skills were similar to an 8-month old. His impairments were completely due to malnutrition, leading to development delay. That this patient’s impairments were the result of something we take for granted, nutrition, was astonishing. His story will stay with us all.

Several members of our group spent the morning with the adult men's unit of the hospital. The adult men's unit has been celebrating their founding this week. This morning, local volunteers and four of our students took thirty men from the “hogar de hombres” (men’s unit) on an outing to the park. Due to the number of patients, the severity of their impairments, and the cobblestone streets, this outing proved very tricky! The streets and sidewalks present inaccessible conditions from our perspective. However, the people are resourceful and make it work. The patients were able to enjoy the pretty day in the park and eat a yummy snack.

Other members of our group had the opportunity to go to a new community medical clinic just outside Antigua. This clinic was built through the Houses to Homes organization, entirely by donation. The clinic is modern and kept immaculately clean and organized. It opened about 10 days ago and is still setting up everything and assessing the needs of the community. The staff consists of a general practitioner, pediatrician, and nurses. Two needs have already emerged since the clinic’s recent opening: developmental care and musculoskeletal evaluation and intervention. Fortunately, these are two areas in which physical therapy can play a large role! The group that attended the clinic today laid the foundation for continuing education opportunities during future trips. The group explained physical therapy’s role in the evaluation and treatment of specific conditions and will return next week to provide education on evidence-based interventions for patients with low back pain. They will also follow up with several pediatric patients treated today.

Overall, we had a full day that allowed us to see physical therapy played out in multiple settings. We found ways to communicate, to treat complex conditions with few materials, and had a lot of fun.

To end, here is a picture of the 7 students on the trip, enjoying a stroll through the main square.

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First Few Days

Hello Everyone!

We had a great day today at Las Obras Hospital. We divided up into different sections - with some students staying with pediatric patients, some with adult patients, and some with orthopedic patients. The patients ranged from those that live at the hospital to those that come in for treatment on a outpatient basis. Students and faculty alike are trying our best to step in where we are needed. Some students were even able to go to a rural school for children who are unable to participate in regular classroom education due to their disabilities.

Below are some pictures from our first few days. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to document our experiences at Las Obras Hospital or at the rural clinic due to patient and Guatemalan therapist preference. However, we are learning so much and the experience has already been amazing.

Above is a picture of the student house; and the faculty house is right across the courtyard. With fountains, open air, indoor verandas, and a rooftop terrace, we couldn't ask for better accommodations. Since Antiqua has become extremely touristy, it is common to have "Americanized" hotels and accommodations. However, those who work here are extremely poor and could never afford housing this extravagant. Most live in rural communities and bus in to town to work.

Above is a picture of Las Obras Hospital at night. The architecture is beautiful and the benefits that Las Obras offers the community are endless. The hospital runs primarily on donations and volunteers, with most patients living there.

Above is Timiteo, a man who owns a plot of land on the coffee farm in San Miguel Escobar. Here he is very proud of our toasted coffee beans. I say "our" coffee beans since some of the students helped peel and toast the beans.

Above Timeteo's wife is demonstrating how to grind the coffee beans on a traditional Mayan grinder. Many students helped with this process too. Although Timeteo took us on a tour and educated us on his business, the only cost was to buy one pound of coffee! You can purchase coffee from Timeteo at www.asgreenasitgets.org

Above is a Guatemalan mother with her son Hugo at the rural school for children with disabilities. Due to lack of resources, this dedicated mother has to carry her son to school daily. The benefits offered at this rural school are extensive. Not only is it run solely on volunteers, but the children are offered therapies that they would never receive otherwise.

In just a day, our group of physical therapists and physical therapy students may have not been able to make lasting changes in individual patients, but we were able to teach both Guatemalan therapists and mothers therapy techniques and functional positioning. However, what we have learned from the Guatemalan therapists, the parents, and the patients is invaluable and we have learned just as much from them or more!

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We've safely arrived!

Hello Everyone,

We made it safely to Antigua, Guatemala! After a short stop at our houses, just to drop of our bags, we headed straight out to a coffee farm. The coffee farm was in an adjacent town called San Miguel Escobar. The farm is run as a co-op and one of the families showed us how to make coffee. Literally, we went through each step, from picking the beans off the vine to hand grinding the toasted beans.

We were all quite exhausted after returning from the coffee farm, so we went to a rooftop restaurant in Antigua to finish off the night. We will be starting our volunteer work at the Las Obras Hospital early in the morning.

Pictures to come tomorrow!

Thanks for reading!

Buenas Noches!

UNC PT Outreach 2011

Welcome to our blog! We are a group of UNC PT students, professors, and alumni traveling to Guatemala for a service-learning trip at San Pedro Hermano hospital in Antigua, Guatemala. This is the second international service-learning trip for the UNC Physical Therapy Division and we are excited about this great adventure! We will be giving educational presentations and working alongside our Guatemalan colleagues to treat patients at the hospital. We will also visit a new community health center in rural Guatemala to provide education to the physicians and nurses there about common musculoskeletal conditions. We leave April 27 and will return May 5. Check back with us then for daily updates on our trip!