Meet Dr. Mohammed Khan from California. With the help of the Maximo Nivel medical staff and a group of Pre-Med students, Dr. Khan led a medical mission trip to support our communities on the outskirts of Antigua, Guatemala Here is his experience:
I had intended to start a Medical mission under the DCMS alumni associations to mentor our youth. The timing was such that not many people could participate and most destinations were closed due to the pandemic. So, a fully DCMS alumni -partnered or sponsored mission could not materialize. Nevertheless, I was able to organize a trip to Guatemala with university students from our DCMS family.
About The Country and Maximo Nivel
Guatemala is a Central American country with a population of 17 million, although the most populous, is still one of the poorest countries there. It has seen its share of civil wars, dictators, western colonialization, (United Fruit Company UFCO sabotaged the Guatemalans, same way British East India did to India), It’s a majority Christian country, 40 percent of people are indigenous Mayans with minimal access to health care. I researched many organizations that work there and chose Maximo Nivel, to be our host/organizer.
The International airport is in Guatemala City, (all travelers were required to have a negative Covid test before boarding), our base would be in the town of Antigua, about 45 minutes southeast. We had the option of staying with a host family for a true Spanish immersion experience, but we chose a private hotel due to the pandemic.
Rosa is Maximo Nivel’s Country Manager and Jorge is their Medical Specialist. A lot of paperwork and protocols are involved for foreigners to go into the midst of indigenous communities and see them as patients and give medicine. They took care of all that before our arrival. Maximo Nivel also brought in Dr Alvarez, a Guatemalan Orthopedic surgeon who doubles up as Pediatrician and Family doctor, to work with us.
Daily Routine and The Actual Medical Campaign
We left the hotel every day by 730 am, comfortable vans were arranged, and we went to various underprivileged communities. Travel times varied from 20 minutes easy paved road, to a 90 minute bumpy jungle ride through rivers. The modus operandi was pretty standard. Stations are set up, one for hygiene education, one for distribution of dental kits, a third one for anti-parasite administration (albendazole), and two tables set up for doctor consultations, and the last station was dispensing medications. Since there is no designated clinic space or pharmacy space, all the stuff has to be packed and unpacked each day.
Although they have translators, a basic working knowledge of Spanish can help you be more efficient. Age demographic varied from 3 yrs to 80 yrs, conditions seen were Diabetes, HTN, skin infections, Gastritis, aches and pains. We had basic medications, metformin, enalapril, multivitamins, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, amoxicillin, cipro, antacids, omeprazole, prenatals, some eye drops etc.
A teaching stethoscope was used to demonstrate heart sounds, lungs sounds, take manual blood pressure, glucometer use. The students also got to observe collagen injections into the knee, saw a bakers cyst for which we did a compression wrap.
Non-Medical Work
One of the communities we served were the workers of a large coffee plantation that caters to many clients including Starbucks. These are seasonal workers who come to Antigua, to live and labor for a few months, so everyone in the family ends up working in the fields, they get paid by the pound of beans they gather. In addition to usual consultations and we arranged snacks for them and donated new clothes for the children.
We also visited a center for underprivileged children. My four students had brought stationery from USA and we purchased school bags locally, they packed up all the bags with the goodies and we handed them out, it was much appreciated by the kids as well as the admins. We also donated funds to buy an e-tablet.
There was another group with Maximo Nivel at the same time, who were organizing activities with the children and our students also joined in. They did holiday parties, goodie bags, storytelling, piñatas, etc.
Tourism/Activities /Sightseeing
Guatemala City, the capital, has the main airport and several big-name hotels. It also has an upscale outdoor mall called Paseo Cayala, which is built in Spanish architectural style. Antigua, where we stayed mostly, on the other hand, is a small town with quaint boutique hotels, and all the streets are paved in cobblestone.
Weather is beautiful, 70s mostly, Guatemala has a lot of biodiversity and is famous for active volcanoes, we hiked to one of them in the evening, called Volcan Pacaya. It’s a moderately strenuous hike of 4 km uphill, you have the option of riding horses as well. I do not recommend this trek unless you are in decent shape, but in the end it’s worth it as you get to see red hot molten lava and burning lava rocks on which, you toast marshmallows. The kids also had fun ATVing in the mountains, while I opted for a motorcycle. We did a walking tour of Antigua, admiring the ruins, churches, artisan shops, and street vendors. We also managed to squeeze in a beach trip, 90 minutes south of Antigua, you hit the pacific coast, where you see beautiful black sand beaches, due to the volcanoes.
Food, Culture and Shopping
The cuisine is different than Mexican, and if you request picante, be ready for some hot spice! Vegetarian and seafood options were plenty and we also found a halal restaurant called Nawal, owned by a Jordanian man by the name Mohamad. Sobremaso is an edgy ice cream shop with creative flavors inspired by multinational ingredients, it had one of the best kulfis I have ever had (Pistachio, figs, cardamom, Rose) And of course we ate at a desi restaurant too, Tikka Masala Blu Plaza. Guatemala is famous for fruits; oranges were very sweet. Surprise finding was our chikoo, or sapota, known locally as Zapota and is bigger than a papaya–it was deliciously sweet!
People are very friendly, respectful towards foreigners as seen in most developing countries, they are tend to be short-statured and hardworking, not a whole lot of obesity noted. Coffee, chocolate and jade stones are famous here. We avoided any late-night activity, and we felt safe walking around.
Google search revealed 3-4 masjids, (mezquitas). We went to one and were able to go and pray Jumma. Muslims here are immigrants from Palestine, Pakistan, as well as native Guatemalan reverts.
Covid Times
Guatemala doesn’t seem to be hit that bad, cases are about 7000+ per million population, same as India, if stats from either country are to be taken at face value. The country opened its borders to travelers on 15 October 2020. People do wear masks in the cities, and social distancing practiced when possible. The beach I found was crowded and no masks.
Overall Experience
My role here was as a physician, guide, mentor, parent, the students are the ones who I hope gained some real-life experience. Much critique has been written about “volunteer tourism” and some people feel it has limited usefulness. Perhaps (and perhaps not), but our intention, our calling and our goal is a bit deeper and esoteric. I had discussions-religious and philosophical with the students each evening, and a debriefing at the end of the mission. I was happy with their daily performance as well as their interactive responses and their outlook.
Jorge our coordinator, had an emotional farewell meeting and thanked us all on behalf of the Guatemalan people we served.
Omar said he never knew there was so much we would learn in a week from a doctor who did not speak English (Dr Álvarez); Iram commented about how little these people had and how grateful they were with our small help; Sidra was touched by the children at the community center and how the live it day by day; Osman said he had so much fun playing with kids, that we’re all friends, and regardless of disparities between us, we are all one humankind under God.
Hopefully this leads our kids to be better human beings and we continue these youth missions in the future.