Churuquita Chiquita

  • Overview
  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Water
  • Business
  • Public Health

Overview


Churuquita Chiquita is located in the biodiverse region of Central Panama and celebrated its transition With Global Brigades in October 2020. People in Churuquita Chiquita are primarily dedicated to handicrafts and rice cultivation, the houses are often made of cement blocks and bricks, and the community has access to a Community Bank, which will support continued investment in local businesses and home improvement projects for families within the community. The top needs expressed by community members when Global Brigades began working with Churuquita Chiquita were: to improve access to health care and improve the aqueduct connections.

Global Brigades is currently working with Medical and Dental brigades in Churuquita Chiquita and the community is on the wait-list for eventual Holistic Model implementation as part of Global Brigades’ strategic plan in Panama.

Corregimiento: Penonomé
District: Coclé

Homes : 1853
Population : 5577
Water System : Yes
Community Bank : Yes
Electricity : Yes
Health Center : Yes
% of Homes with Latrines : 11
Education in the Community : Up to middle school
Distance from Lodging Facility : N/A

Medical

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

HEALTH CARE ACCESS:

The community of Churuquita Chiquita doesn’t have a health center for the community members to access to. In order to visit the nearest Health Facility, they have to take a bus, which is around 2 dollars, and travel 15 km. This supposes a big challenge to the community members that, sometimes, can’t afford to travel that far to visit the Health Facility. Currently, Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model with Churuquita Chiquita and has begun with the Medical Brigades program.

51

Volunteers

314

Patient Consultations

84

Vision Screenings

39

Health Education Workshops

Distance from Nearest Health Center : 15 kms
Common Illnesses in Children : Diarrhea, Respiratory Infection, Abdominal Pain
Common Illnesses in Adults : Hypertension, Diabetes, Renal Insufficiency

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS:

GB Panama’s Medical Dental team started the Agentes Comunitarios en Salud or ACeS program in 2016. “Agentes” from 10 communities in East Panama and Darien were Panama’s first community health workers. 1 CHW in Churuquita Chiquita is already working in the community helping the community members when they need basic medical aid.

Some of the CHW’s primary responsibilities include:

  • Promoting healthy practices and maintaining contact with GB staff about their progress
  • Performing First Aid in the case of an emergency
  • Managing the Patient Referral cases of the community
  • Promoting involvement with other GB programs such as Human Rights, Public Health and Microfinance workshops
  • Recording and monitoring members of their respective communities who:
    • Are pregnant
    • Have a chronic disease
    • Are children under five
      years old.

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN CHURUQUITA CHIQUITA:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Dayton Medical Brigade March 2022 28

 

Dental

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model with Churuquita Chiquita and has begun with the Dental Brigades program. The dental program provides fillings, extractions, and fluoride treatments as a standard part of medical brigades.

165

Patient Cosultations

29

Extractions

86

Fluoride Treatments

60

Education Workshop

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN CHURUQUITA CHIQUITA:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Marquette University Dental Brigade February 2022 28

 

Water

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Churuquita Chiquita but has not yet begun with the Water Brigades program. Now in the planning phase, the installation and/or improvement of the water system and connectivity will start as soon as feasible.

Water System : No
Type of Water System : Gravity and turbine aqueduct
% of Homes with Access to Water : 60
Water Council : Yes

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

CHURUQUITA CHIQUITAS’S ECONOMIC CHALLENGE

Churuquita Chiquita’s community members lack access to financial resources within the community. The majority of community members do not have bank accounts and there are only limited informal forms of credit available. Usually, larger financial institutions, do not approve loans to community members without a fixed income, making it difficult for local micro-enterprises to grow and thrive. Furthermore, these financial institutions require members to pay monthly fees that are usually high.

135

Volunteers

30

Loans Disbursed

CHURUQUITA CHIQUITAS’S MICROFINANCE SOLUTION

The goal of the Business Program is to stimulate the local economy by organizing community volunteers around a community bank, or “Caja rural”, which is entirely owned and operated by its members. The Business Program provides training and support to help strengthen these community banks. In order to pool their limited funds together, increase the capital available to the community bank, and expand the impact of its financial services, each member contributes a capitalization fee for which they receive a proportional amount of the bank’s dividends at the end of its fiscal year. Upon the completion of six months of executive board training, the community bank begins giving out loans to bank members to spur economic growth and home improvement projects.

The Community Bank in Churuquita Chiquita helps the community members by providing them with accessible savings and credit accounts to help them invest in agribusiness and other small business ideas. The community bank was established in 2020.

Local Businesses : Convenient stores
Economic Activities : Agriculture, artisan goods, skilled labor
Community Bank : Yes
Community Bank Members : 12

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Churuquita Chiquita but has not yet begun with the Public Health Brigades program. Now in the planning phase, the delivery and installation of household health products will start as soon as feasible.

% of houses with latrines : 11
% of houses with eco-stoves : 0
% of homes with water storage units : 65
% of homes with traditional stoves : 3
% of homes with concrete floor : 65
% of homes with bath/shower : 49
Common house materials : Cement blocks / bricks

Local Reference Points

View the map to see the closest volunteer lodging facilities, hospitals, and other relevant points of reference.

  • Feature