Rural Medical Response
Objective:
To bring sustained, accessible healthcare to 11 remote communities in the San Juan region. Project emphasis is on disease treatment & prevention.
After spending considerable time in each of the beneficiary villages, community members have identified their current top priority to be access to medical solutions and prevention plans.
Beneficiary Communities:
There are 8 beneficiary sectors, servicing 11 communities total. Communities are located in the province of Rivas, within approximately 40 km from the town of San Juan del Sur.
Sector 1: Bernandino
Sector 2: Mira Valle (Servicing Mira Valle & Toro Venado)
Sector 3: Los Barbudos
Sector 4: Pueblo Nuevo
Sector 5: Collado
Sector 6: San Antonio (Servicing San Antonio, Ceilan & Sta Elena)
Sector 7: Tortuga
Sector 8: Monte Cristo
Community Information:
Homes are simple, with tin or plastic roofs, wood or plastic walls, and dirt floors. All communities have houses spaced quite distant from each other, often with more than 2 families per house. Some of these communities do not have electricity. The Latitude Project has visited each community & conducted successful community-driven projects in the past.
Economic Activities:
The main source of income for all sectors is physical labour, both within and outside the country. The needs & difficulties found in these communities are similar to the majority of the rural population in
Nicaragua, with many families having to migrate to Costa Rica to find employment. The average income is $150/monthly. Agriculture is imperative, basic grains such as corn, wheat, rice and beans are grown for home consumption. Climate change has a great affect on communities because the lack of rainfall impedes the basic grains harvest.
Access to Education:
The communities offer access to education for young children. Teachers are trained by the Ministry of Education and classes are offered for preschool to sixth grade. Families struggle to afford the notebooks, pencils, and other materials needed for school. Teachers are often not equipped with the necessary textbooks & materials. In order to continue education beyond sixth grade, students must travel to San Juan del Sur. (An impossibility for many families)
Access to Medical:
These 8 sectors currently have no access to healthcare besides the difficult travel to a facility located more than 55 km away. Access to personal vehicles is very limited or non-existent in all sectors. There are public buses that travel close to some of the sectors, travelling to Rivas in the morning and returning in the evening. Many families cannot afford the cost of the bus or necessary medication.
Access to Water:
Communities currently access water through hand-dug wells. During the summer, the lack of rain presents an issue as wells run dry and families are forced to outsource water from neighbouring communities. Water contamination is also an issue; as wells are often dug near outhouses & face drainage contamination.
