Las Gavetas*

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

Overview

Las Gavetas is located in the mountainous region of central Nicaragua in the department of Esteli. A typical house is made of cement blocks and wood. The community has access to a local health centre within the community, as well as both a multigrade primary school and a secondary school. 30 students attend the primary school with two teachers and two classrooms. The primary school goes up to grade 6. Following, students have the option of attending secondary school, up to grade 12. Currently, there are about 60 students attending secondary school in Las Gavetas, with three teachers and four classrooms. Most people in the community work as agricultural labourers.

Global Brigades is currently working with the Medical Program in Las Gavetas and has been since the first Medical Brigade in May 2016. In their communication with Global Brigades, the top three needs expressed were lack of latrines or properly functioning latrines, the water system being in a poor state, and limited access to medications. Las Gavetas is on the waitlist for continuing Holistic Model implementation as part of Global Brigades’ strategic plan in Nicaragua.

Municipality: La Trinidad
Department: Esteli

*Brigades to this community are temporarily suspended at this time

Homes : 70
Population : 210
Water System : Yes
Community Bank : Yes
Electricity : Yes
Health Center : Yes
Community Health Workers : Yes
% of Homes with Latrines : 30%
Education : Up to 12th Grade
Distance from Lodging Facility : 30 km

Medical

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

HEALTH CARE ACCESS

Healthcare access in Nicaragua is structured by the Ministry of Health, based in the capital, Managua. From there, each of the fifteen departments has its own department hospital, which is overseen by the SILAIS administrations (Sistema Local de Atención Integral en Salud). At a municipality level, there is a health centre (Centro de Salud) for every municipality within the department. While they are not hospitals, health centres in the municipality are typically staffed with one doctor, and two nurses, that can attend to patients with chronic, communicable, or noncommunicable diseases, as well as pregnancies. They, however, do not have the ability to perform surgeries.

Lastly, most but not all communities have a Puesto de Salud, a smaller health centre. These health centres are usually staffed with only one nurse and a rotating physician. Physicians are staffed in these health centres by Nicaragua’s Social Service. This is an initiative that requires Nicaraguan medical students to do two years of service in rural communities prior to graduating.  The physician density in Nicaragua is approximately 1,099 people for every 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. This density is significantly lower for the 40.6% of the population that lives in rural areas. It is for this reason that Nicaragua’s Social Service initiative brings medical students to these communities. However, access remains limited since these training physicians may be assigned to up to fifteen communities at a time.  

Las Gavetas has access to a health centre within their community. Even with this access, it is important to note that medications, supplies, and materials are often not available in these health centres and are dependent on government funding. There is no access to private pharmacies. Additionally, as noted above, access to trained medical professionals is limited.

During their initial communications with Global Brigades, the top illnesses in children that Las Gavetas expressed were diarrheal diseases, and respiratory infections. For adults, common illnesses are chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. Without access to trained healthcare professionals and medications, chronic diseases can go unmanaged, leading to further health problems. Acute illnesses can also be severe and affect the quality of life.

94

Volunteers

1,931

Patient Consultations

N/A

Vision Screenings Provided

82

Health Education Workshops

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS

Las Gavetas has 2 Community Health Workers that are trained by the Ministry of Health every two months. Community Health Workers, or Brigadistas de Salud, work on a volunteer basis as advocates for healthcare within their communities. They are tasked with treating and preventing common illnesses, and some of their responsibilities include first aid, supporting and caring for pregnancies and newborns, and responding to emergency situations. They are also responsible for following up with chronic patients to ensure proper administration of medications and treatments to avoid further complications.

Global Brigades is planning to establish a partnership with Las Gavetas Community Health Workers and the Ministry of Health and is looking forward to providing these Community Health Workers with blood pressure cuffs, stethoscopes, glucometers, and first aid kits, to facilitate more impactful work. The presence of these volunteers and their advocacy for health within their community contributes to the sustainability of healthcare supported by Global Brigades’ Medical Program and is one of the most impactful disease prevention strategies in rural communities.

BRIGADE INFORMATION

Community members from Las Gavetas attend Medical Brigades in the community health centre of Las Gavetas. This location has rooms for triage, consultation, dentistry and pharmacy stations.

Las Gavetas offers strong support for Medical Brigades from the community volunteers. One way the 8-15 community volunteers assist is by running intake. Intake is the very first station of the clinic and is where the community volunteers write down the patient’s name, date of birth, community, and identification number. Additionally, community volunteers manage clinic organizations. They set up tables and chairs in the clinic prior to the brigade’s arrival as well as direct patients to the next medical station, once the clinic has opened for the day.

Lastly, community volunteers lead adult health education sessions on sanitation and hygiene, chronic diseases, contraception, Women’s health, and water purification. Las Gavetas ’s community volunteers are essential to the efficiency and effectiveness of Medical Brigades.

AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED PER DAY: 694
NEARBY COMMUNITIES: LAS TABLAS, LA CANADA HATOS, CANADA FAMA, LAS LOMAS, LA LAGUNA

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN LAS GAVETAS

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Miami Medical Brigade December 2016 34 Pennsylvania State University Medical Brigade May 2017 25
University of Maryland Baltimore County Medical Brigade March 2019 35

Dental

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

DENTAL CARE ACCESS

While medical access is low, dental access is even more sparing. Dental services are not available within the community health centres, or even the municipality health centres. Instead, if a patient was needing dental care, they would be required to travel to one of the country’s fifteen department hospitals. This could be up to a 2-3 hour bus ride, with many needing to first walk or horseback ride to the bus stop.

325

Patient Consultations

103

Number of Extractions

309

Fillings Performed

24

Dental Education Workshops

BRIGADE INFORMATION

Working closely with the Medical Program, the Dental Program provides fillings, extractions, and fluoride treatments as a standard part of medical brigades. Community members from Las Gavetas attend Dental Brigades in the community health centre of Las Gavetas.

Las Gavetas offers strong support for Dental Brigades from the community volunteers. One way the 8-15 community volunteers assist is by running intake. Intake is the very first station of the clinic and is where the community volunteers write down the patient’s name, date of birth, community, and identification number. Additionally, community volunteers manage clinic organizations. They set up tables and chairs in the clinic prior to the brigade’s arrival as well as direct patients to the next medical station, once the clinic has opened for the day. Lastly, community volunteers lead adult health education sessions on oral health and hygiene. Las Gavetas’s community volunteers are essential to the efficiency and effectiveness of Dental Brigades.

AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED PER DAY: 694
NEARBY COMMUNITIES: LAS TABLAS, LA CANADA HATOS, CANADA FAMA, LAS LOMAS, LA LAGUNA

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN LAS GAVETAS

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Miami Medical Brigade December 2016 34 Pennsylvania State University Medical Brigade May 2017 25
University of Maryland Baltimore County Medical Brigade March 2019 35

Water

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Las Gavetas but has not yet begun with the Water Program. Now in the planning phase, the financing, delivery, and installation of a water system infrastructure, or repairs to existing infrastructure will start as soon as feasible.

Currently, Las Gavetas has a gravity-based system with in-home connections to 100% of the homes. The system was built in the early 2000s. However, while the pressure of the water is good, and accessible to all homes, the water is not treated. Untreated water could potentially lead to contamination and illness. 

Water System : Yes
Type of Water System : Gravity-based in-home connection
% of Homes with Access to Water : 100%
Water Council : Yes

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

LAS GAVETAS’ ECONOMIC CHALLENGE 

Rural communities in Nicaragua face a number of structural obstacles when it comes to economic growth. Access to credit is limited by physical barriers in transportation and exclusion from formal financial institutions. This exclusion can be the result of a lack of financial literacy, credit history, and land titles or substantial assets consumer goods to offer as collateral. Additionally, maintaining savings is not a common practice in rural communities in Nicaragua, and when families do save, they often do not have a safe place to do so.

In Las Gavetas, the average family income is low per household. The main form of employment in Las Gavetas is agriculture, and the primary crop produced is vary based on the season. Economic growth faces additional obstacles due to the community’s dependence on agriculture and day labouring, as its inhabitants’ incomes are earned on a seasonal basis, determined by crop yields, and susceptible to external factors like drought, disease, and international market trends.

*No volunteers have been able to support this program’s work but continued progress has been able to be accomplished through the generous support of the Merkel Foundation.

0*

Volunteers

26

Loans Disbursed

35

Savings Accounts Opened

N/A

Capital Invested

LAS GAVETAS’ MICRO-FINANCE SOLUTION 

The Business Program works to stimulate the local economy by organizing community residents around a community bank, which is entirely owned and operated by its members. Focusing on providing access to low-interest loans credit and savings for the members, its Bank Council members are tasked with growing the community bank and managing the funds. The Business Program provides training and support to help strengthen these community banks and stimulate the flow of capital within the community. These financial services can be used by members for everything from farmers taking out loans to buy their seeds before planting, to a family taking out a loan to cover medical expenses. 

Las Gavetas’ community bank, named Divino Niño, was established July 2019 with the support of Global Brigades. The community bank has 23 female and 11 male shareholders who meet bi-monthly along with a bank council that leads the shareholders and oversees the meetings. In order to pool funds together, increase the capital available to the community bank, and expand the impact of its financial services, each member contributes a monthly share or fee for which they receive a proportional amount of the bank’s dividends at the end of its fiscal year.

Additionally, Global Brigades provides matching capitalizations once these capitalizations meet established benchmarks. Global Brigades also has monthly follow-ups and training with the community bank to strengthen the bank overtime and ensure its sustainability. Global Brigades and Las Gavetas’ community bank are working towards being able to disburse loans, increase savings and train individuals on financial management.

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Las Gavetas 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.

% of Homes with Latrines : 30%
% of Homes with Showers : 0%
% of Homes with Washing Station : 4%
Common House Materials : Cement brick

Local Reference Points

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

  • Feature