Guatemala people are hard working & resilient yet it has some of the worst poverty, malnutrition and maternal-child mortality rates in the region, with the highest out of pocket health care expense of all Latin American countries. Guatemalans are recovering from years of civil war, frequent earthquakes, and a long and discouraging history of government corruption.

Training doctors in the skills lab and integrating educational modules, will produce highly skilled, fellowship trained doctors strengthening a network of trained arthroscopic surgeons throughout the country. These doctors will reach more of the population–keeping people who seek care at work and earning a living. Beginning with resident education in the Trauma Department of San Marcos hospital, we hope to increase accessibility of Arthroscopy throughout the region.

Arthroscopic surgical equipment, CT scans, and other modern procedures are not readily available–due to lack of funding and familiarity in their use. In 2013, we installed an arthroscopic tower and performed the first arthroscopic procedure in the hospital. We’ll look for ways to create low cost updates to the facility while working with the hospital administration to evaluate equipment needs. Generous donations provide the implants and fracture equipment most people are unable to purchase.