Nueva Arenosa

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

Overview

Nueva Arenosa is located in West Panama. Nueva Arenosa is home to about 1200 people and is primarily a Latino community. The community has a water system and access to a health center. Students have the option to attend school up until 9th grade. It takes an average of 15 minutes to walk from house to house in Nueva Arenosa. Most households in this community are made of cement blocks and zinc. 95% of families in this community work in agriculture. Some of the needs the community expressed were a sports field, availability of mammograms in the health center, and improvements to the secondary school.

Corregimiento: La Trinidad
District: Capira
Province: West Panama

Homes : 200
Population : 1200
Water System : Yes
Community Bank : No
Electricity : Some homes
Health Center : Yes
Community Health Workers : No
Homes with Latrines : 90%
Education : Up to grade 9
Distance from Panama City : 53 km

Medical

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

HEALTH CARE ACCESS:

Even though Panama is a country with a lot of economic growth, this growth does not apply equally to all Panamanians, especially those in rural areas. This results in stark inequality when it comes to healthcare access. The Panamanian Ministry of Health (MINSA) provides two different types of health facilities throughout rural Panama: Centros de Salud and Puestos de Salud. Centros 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. Puestos are found sporadically in rural communities and generally have a single nurse available. 

Even with this coverage, the Centros frequently lack a full pharmacy and the staff capacity to see every patient each day. After walking long distances or paying for a bus, rural visitors to the Centros can expect long wait times given the limited staff and resources to meet the demand from all neighboring communities. The physician density in Panama remains around 630 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.

Nueva Arenosa has a Puesto de Salud in the community. The most common seen illnesses are skin diseases, parasites, and the common cold.

286

Volunteers

2,852

Patient Consultations

96

Health Education Workshops

58

Vision Screenings

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS:

A group of CHWs from East Panama, trained in 2019

The community of Nueva Arenosa does not yet have Community Health Workers. Global Brigades Panama Medical Program is working diligently to train volunteers as CHWs in its partner communities as part of the Holistic Model. Nueva Arenosa will receive training as soon as possible to further support the health of its community members.

Community Health Workers, or Agentes Comunitarios en Salud (ACeS), work on a volunteer basis as advocates for healthcare within their communities. Their primary responsibilities include: educating community members to prevent common illnesses, providing emergency first aid, supporting pregnant mothers and newborns, and following up with chronic patients. 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

A brigader assists with triage at a clinic in Nueva Arenosa

Medical and Dental Brigade clinics are hosted in Nueva Arenosa’s school building. The various stations of the clinic are held in the classrooms. Volunteers assist with intake and triage, then shadow local doctors, dentists, and pharmacists. Each day of the brigade, an average of 13 educational workshops or charlas are facilitated with the clinic’s patients.

  • AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED: 413

MEDICAL VOLUNTEERS IN NUEVA ARENOSA:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Maryland Baltimore County Medical March 2015 24 University of Oklahoma Medical May 2016 38
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Medical March 2017 22 DePaul University Medical December 2018 19
Ball State University & Ohio State University Medical May 2019 30 Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals Medical June 2019 13
University of Texas Austin & Hastings College Medical August 2019 35 Saint Louis University Medical January 2020 30
Florida Gulf Coast University Medical Brigade May 2022 26 University of Dayton Medical March 2023 22

 

Dental

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

DENTAL ACCESS

A dental charla in Ipeti Emberá, Panama

In 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 dentist within a reasonable distance.

1,260

Dental Patient Consultations

659

Fluoride Treatments

465

Extractions

72

Fillings Performed

BRIGADE INFORMATION

A brigader assists with triage at a clinic in Nueva Arenosa

Medical and Dental Brigade clinics are hosted in Nueva Arenosa’s school building. The various stations of the clinic are held in the classrooms. Volunteers assist with intake and triage, then shadow local doctors, dentists, and pharmacists. Each day of the brigade, an average of 13 educational workshops or charlas are facilitated with the clinic’s patients.

  • AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED: 413

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN NUEVA ARENOSA:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Maryland Baltimore County Medical March 2015 24 University of Oklahoma Medical May 2016 38
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Medical March 2017 22 DePaul University Medical December 2018 19
Ball State University & Ohio State University Medical May 2019 30 Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals Medical June 2019 13
University of Texas Austin & Hastings College Medical August 2019 35 Saint Louis University Medical January 2020 30
Florida Gulf Coast University Medical Brigade May 2022 26 University of Dayton Medical Brigade March 2023 22

 

Water

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Nueva Arenosa but has not yet begun 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.

Water System : Yes
System Type : Gravity Aqueduct
Homes connected to water : 100%
Water Council : Yes

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Nueva Arenosa but has not yet begun with the Business Program. Now in the planning phase, a community bank will be established as soon as feasible.

Community Bank : No
Community Bank Members : N/a
Economic Activities : agriculture, unskilled labor
Existing microenterprises : restaurants, small shops, bars

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Nueva Arenosa 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 flushing toilets : 90%
Homes with latrines : 80%
Homes with bath/shower : N/A
Common house materials : concrete blocks, wood

Local Reference Points

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

  • Feature