Update on Martha

A few days ago we wrote about Martha, a 17 year-old girl from San Borja, Bolivia. Martha had a large tumor in her knee, and Mano a Mano provided an emergency air transport for her to Cochabamba.

Martha being transported to Cochabamba

Martha was taken to the Clinica Los Olivos, one of the best health care centers in Bolivia. We asked for an update from our staff in Bolivia about Martha's condition, and yesterday we received this note from Maria Blanca who went to visit her:

I was hoping to share good news with you, but it's not the case. 

International Conference on Acute Care with Regions Hospital

Last week Mano a Mano hosted 15 doctors, nurses, and health care professionals from Minnesota for a continuing health education conference with our medical staff in Bolivia. This was the fourth conference in the past 2 years that Regions Hospital staff has participated in; hundreds of Bolivian health care professionals attend each conference, including Mano a Mano staff and staff from other organizations throughout the country.

Conference attendees

Emergency Air Rescue in San Borja, Beni

One of our most recent emergency air rescues occurred on May 5, 2011. We received a call from a small community that was 3 hours away on horseback from San Borja, Bolivia, in the department of Beni.

There were 5 people that needed assistance. Unfortunately, we only had space for 3 in our Cessna airplane because one of the women needed to lay down. This 17 year old young woman had a very large tumor on her knee - twice as big as her head - and was in extreme pain; she could barely move. She lived in a Chiman community (one of the indigenous groups of Bolivia) and didn't speak any Spanish, so she wasn't able to explain what had happened.

Tumor on her knee

Container of Surplus Supplies Arrives in Bolivia

Our container of supplies recently arrived in Bolivia! In October of 2010, Mano a Mano US volunteers loaded 16,634 pounds of school supplies, wheelchairs, walkers, and other items. We have now shipped more than 3,000,000 pounds of supplies since 1994, valued conservatively at more than $10 million! These items were donated from hospitals, schools, and other institutions in the US and were destined for the landfill; while in Bolivia even the most basic items are not available. These supplies fill a critical need in insuring that the infrastructure projects that we build are well-equipped. Clinics without medical supplies and equipment are not functional; schools that do not have desks, chairs, and supplies do not last. While many of these items are bought or made in Bolivia - our staff at Mano a Mano Bolivia make the beds, desks, and chairs for our projects, and local Bolivian governments purchase items such as autoclaves, microscopes, and other equipment - we save money by being able to use donated supplies, freeing resources to be used in other areas.

Woman receiving walker from Mano a Mano Bolivia warehouse; we filled 691 requests for supplies in 2010