El Saucito

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

Overview

El Saucito is located within the municipality of Nacaome in the department of Valle in southern Honduras. The typical house is made of adobe. Children in the community have access to Centro Básico, or up to ninth grade. Most of the community members work in agriculture. The top needs expressed by El Saucito’s inhabitants during their initial communications with Global Brigades include a water system, in-home public health infrastructure, and access to financial services.

Municipality: Nacaome
Department: Valle

Homes : 63
Population : 310
Water System : Yes
Community Bank : Yes
Electricity : Yes
Health Center : No
Community Health Workers : Yes
Homes with Latrines : 15%
Education : Up to 9th Grade
Distance from Lodging Facility : 25 km

Medical

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

HEALTH CARE ACCESS

The Honduran government provides two different types of health centers throughout rural Honduras: Centros de Salud Médico Odontológico (CESAMOs) and Centros de Salud Rural (CESARs). CESAMOs are the larger of the two, often found in municipalities, and typically have at least one physician on staff at all times with nurses and potentially a dentist. CESARs are found sporadically in rural communities and generally have a single nurse available.

Even with this coverage, it is important to note that medications, supplies, and materials are often not available in these health centres and the physician density in Honduras remains at around 1,220 people for every one doctor. According to the World Health Organization, there should be a maximum of 435 people per physician to qualify a country as having adequate access to medical attention.

There is no health centre in the community of El Saucito. If community members require access to medical attention, they must walk nine kilometres to the nearest CESAMO in Nacaome. The most common illnesses reported by community members include diarrhoea, the common cold, dengue fever, asthma, diabetes, and arterial hypertension.

251

Volunteers

601

Patient Consulations

142

Vision Screenings Provided

N/A

Health Education Workshops

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS

El Saucito currently has access to twenty-four Community Health Workers (CHWs). Most of these CHWs were trained by Global Brigades. Our Medical Program is actively working to assess the current CHWs’ knowledge, recruit additional volunteers, and provide supplemental training and certification.

BRIGADE INFORMATION

Community members in El Saucito attend Medical and Dental Brigade clinics hosted in the community’s school building. The various stations of the clinic are held in the school’s six classrooms. Doctors are able to spend an average of ten minutes with each patient.

AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED: 337

NEARBY COMMUNITIES: SANTA CLARA, ESTACONES, EL CHIFLON, ALMENDRON, CASAS NUEVAS, JUNQUILLO, CANAGUAL

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN EL SAUCITO

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Virginia Tech University Medical Brigade January 2016 37 Southeast Missouri State University Medical Brigade August 2016 21
University of North Texas Medical Brigade May 2019 20 Southwest High School Health TeleSquads October 2020 22
University of Arkansas Medical TeleBrigade January 2021 52 Stockton Academy Health TeleSquad February 2021 17
Middle Tennessee State University & CEGEP Marianopolis Medical TeleBrigade May 2021 30

Dental

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

DENTAL CARE ACCESS

Working closely with the Medical Program, the Dental Program provides fillings, extractions, and fluoride treatments as a standard part of medical brigades. Most community members do not have regular access to dental care due to the lack of a dentist within a reasonable distance.

47

Patient Consultations

48

Number of Extractions

30

Fillings Performed

7

Dental Education Workshop

BRIGADE INFORMATION

Community members in El Saucito attend Medical and Dental Brigade clinics hosted in the community’s school building. The various stations of the clinic are held in the school’s six classrooms. Doctors are able to spend an average of ten minutes with each patient.

AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED: 337

NEARBY COMMUNITIES: SANTA CLARA, ESTACONES, EL CHIFLON, ALMENDRON, CASAS NUEVAS, JUNQUILLO, CANAGUAL

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN EL SAUCITO

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Virginia Tech University Medical Brigade January 2016 37 Southeast Missouri State University Medical Brigade August 2016 21
University of North Texas Medical Brigade May 2019 20 Southwest High School Health TeleSquads October 2020 22
University of Arkansas Medical TeleBrigade January 2021 52 Stockton Academy Health TeleSquad February 2021 17
Middle Tennessee State University & CEGEP Marianopolis Medical TeleBrigade May 2021 30

Engineering

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL SAUCITO’S ENGINEERING CHALLENGE

Prior to working with Global Brigades, the community of El Saucito had 2 community wells to have access to water, but the water was untreated and very limited in dry season. Community members, usually women, loaded water jugs on their heads and walk to and from the well in order to gather enough water for the day. Despite the poor water service, community members paid a monthly fee to retrieve well water in the dry season and there is a Water Council in existence.

19

Volunteers

282

Project Beneficiaries

7.17

Kilometers of pipeline designed

15,000

Storage Tank Volume (gallons)

ENGINEERING SOLUTION

Global Brigades volunteers completed the engineering design for the El Saucito water system in June 2016. In May 2018, construction of the water system began to construct a well system that included a 15000 gallon tank and 6 kilometers of piping. The system was completed in September 2018, and 71 households now have consistent access to clean water.

ENGINEERING VOLUNTEERS IN EL SAUCITO

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Manchester University & the University of California Irvine June 2016 19

Water

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL SAUCITO’S WATER CHALLENGE

Prior to working with Global Brigades, the community of El Saucito had 2 community wells to have access to water, but the water was untreated and very limited in dry season. Community members, usually women, loaded water jugs on their heads and walk to and from the well in order to gather enough water for the day. Despite the poor water service, community members paid a monthly fee to retrieve well water in the dry season and there is a Water Council in existence.

246

Volunteers

282

Project Beneficiaries

6

Kilometers of Pipeline Installed

15,000

Storage Tank Volume (gallons)

EL SAUCITO’S WATER SOLUTION

Global Brigades volunteers completed the engineering design for the El Saucito water system in June 2016. In May 2018, construction of the water system began to construct a well system that included a 15000 gallon tank and 6 kilometres of piping. The system was completed in September 2018, and 71 households now have consistent access to clean water.

WATER VOLUNTEERS IN EL SAUCITO

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Case Western Reserve University Medical Brigade & Maryville University Medical Brigade & Wake Forest University Medical Brigade May 2018 32 North Carolina State University Medical Brigade & University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa Medical Brigade May 2018 29
Louisiana State University Medical Brigade May 2018 49 California State University Bakersfield Medical Brigade & Johns Hopkins University Medical Brigade May 2018 36
Thomas Jefferson University Medical Brigade May 2018 24 University College Dublin Water Brigade & University of Illinois at Chicago Water Brigade May 2018 22
Johns Hopkins University Public Health Brigade & San Francisco State University Public Health Brigade May 2018 9 University of Toronto Medical Brigade & University of Ontario Institute of Technology Medical Brigade August 2018 21
University of Houston Medical Brigade August 2018 24

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL SAUCITO’S ECONOMIC CHALLENGE:

The majority of community members work in agriculture. This primarily consists of subsistence farming, although excess crops are sometimes sold. Most agricultural workers make about 100 lempiras (approximately US $4.25) a day during the rainy season. Regardless of occupation, most families earn around 4,000 lempiras per month (approximately US $170). Almost all household income is used to purchase food for consumption.

N/A

Volunteers

24

Loans Disbursed

88

Savings Accounts Opened

N/A

Capital Invested

EL SAUCITO’S MICRO-FINANCE SOLUTION:

In 2018, Global Brigades worked alongside El Saucito to establish Caja Rural El Saucito. The bank has 13 female and 1 male shareholders, and the members meet in the bank’s own structure every month. They are able to offer loans and savings accounts to community members so that families can plan and stabilize their finances. This is especially beneficial for farmers, who can take out loans to invest in their agricultural production and pay them back after the harvest. Loans allow many subsistence farmers to not only consume the crops they harvest but also earn an income from selling their excess.

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

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

Homes with Latrines : N/A
Homes with Eco-Stoves : N/A
Homes with Water FIlters : N/A
Common House Materials : Adobe

Local Reference Points

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

  • Feature

The Largest Movement for Global Health and Holistic Development

“Global Brigades” refers to one or more Global Brigades entities, each of which is a separate and independent legal entity; “Global Brigades, Inc.,” “Global Brigades Health and Development,” “Global Brigades UK,” “GBO Ghana,” “Asociacion Global Brigadas de Honduras,” and “Fundacion Brigadas Globales de Panama”. Global Brigades Health and Development (“Global Brigades Canada”) is a federally registered Canadian charity independent from Global Brigades Inc.

Guidestar 2021