Thank you for praying for and giving towards the work of the Impact Ministries Medical and Dental Clinic in Guatemala. We’re so excited to see the medical and dental clinic successfully up and running again, and we’re looking forward to the bright future it has in providing excellent care for the Impact students and staff!
We have been able to hire Dr. Rene Rivas to begin seeing patients on a regular, monthly basis. Dr. Rivas is a Guatemalan Christian family physician who has been involved with and overseeing the Impact Ministries Clinic for years and who shares the vision and mission of Impact Ministries. Dr. Rivas was able to work alongside the medical team that visited Guatemala last August, and has provided continuing care for some of our patients. With his local knowledge of the medical community and his monthly hours, he has already made a major impact on the quality of care being provided at the clinic. He has identified some patients that need specialty care and has been able to help them find access to that care. Dr. Rivas has been a true blessing for the clinic and for the Impact Ministries students and staff.
We were also able to hire back two full-time nurses. They, too, were available for the medical team and have been doing check ups on the students and staff. After a break during school holidays, they are now continuing the student check ups, preparing to give children and staff antiparasitic medication, and continuing basic hygiene education, as well as arranging for patients to see Dr. Rivas. The nurses will be very involved with resuming health education initiatives at the schools that had been paused due to Covid protocols and will soon be starting an exciting new dental initiative.
We have many students who suffer from dental issues. Dental caries and overall poor oral health cause children to miss school frequently and to not eat well, not to mention significant daily pain. After much discussion with doctors and dentists involved with the Impact Ministries Clinic, we have come up with a dental program that we believe will markedly decrease dental issues for our students and give them much better overall health. Starting this spring, we will provide our students and staff with flouride treatment (the application of a fluoride paste to their teeth) twice a year, at the cost of about $1 an application. Along with dental education and the provision of a toothbrush and toothpaste, we’re looking forward to much healthier smiles for our children!
If you’d like to help us support the Impact Ministries Clinic and our new dental initiative, or if you’re a healthcare professional and you’d like to arrange a time to join us in Guatemala on a medical mission, please check out Medical Missions and Giving Opportunities at impactministries.ca/medical