LegendaryLife.com Blog

Frustration of a government bureaucrat with the lack of efficient medical services to the poorest in his country of Ecuador, Dr. Rodas starts up the Cinterandes Foundation in 1995 with a group of like minded medical professionals.

Background

Medical care is quite easily accessible if you live in a modern city, such as New York or Chicago but what do people who live at the top of mountains, hundreds of miles from nowhere in deep jungles or in isolated fishing villages do if they have a problem? More often then not, if they don’t have money, nothing. This is the sad reality that most of the world lives in, from Africa to China, South America to even North America. The solutions aren’t difficult to come by, but finding medically trained professionals with the will and passion for the ultimate in medical adventures is.

Summary

I encourage you to view this video but here is a summary in the meantime:

• some patients wait YEARS to seek treatment because of cost
• operations take place on mobile platforms (trucks and boats) for more efficient delivery of services
• relies on private donations and money originating in Europe and the United States to keep things going
• have performed over 5 200 surgeries so far
• each doctor is assigned a geographical area to provide basic health care to the local population
• improvisation is the key when you don’t have access to all the supplies you require
• diabetes, heart disease and tuberculosis are common diagnosis in even the most rural of places
• doctors are always looking for the forgotten, poor and most needy to provide their much needed services for
• 13 million people live in Ecuador, of which 25% are indigenous living in poverty
• doctors work in conjunction with local healers to treat the whole patient, services aren’t simply isolated to the patients medical needs
• apparently guinea pigs are great at diagnosing injuries after passing them over a patient
• Dr. Rodas son plans on taking over the Cinterandes Foundation in a few years
• patient quote “everything is worse when you are not healthy”… I couldn’t agree more!
• the Cinterandes Foundation provides medical care for over 50 thousand people

The Bottom Line

You are never too small, too insignificant, to create lasting change in this world for the better.

Reference
http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/rough/2007/06/ecuador_health.html