{"id":29716,"date":"2023-09-14T16:37:54","date_gmt":"2023-09-14T23:37:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/?p=29716"},"modified":"2023-09-14T16:40:45","modified_gmt":"2023-09-14T23:40:45","slug":"gratitude-in-guatemala","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/2023\/09\/14\/gratitude-in-guatemala","title":{"rendered":"Gratitude in Guatemala\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A study abroad program again sent UW Bothell students to study in Guatemala this July, providing primary care and health education in small, rural villages far from medical centers. In all, 14 students participated, four from the Master of Nursing program and 10 undergraduates majoring in either Nursing or Health Studies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the education during the trip flowed both ways, as the School of Nursing & Health Studies<\/a> students reported how much they learned about other cultures and about their roles as global citizens. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am absolutely amazed at how these villages survive in such closed off places,\u201d said Kaila Schober, a Nursing student. \u201cThere are villages where they can’t grow their own food, or the closest health clinic could be hours away \u2026 to actually be there in person and sharing the space with them is world changing.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The students also expressed deep gratitude to their village colleagues who made the mutual exchange possible, including representatives of Guatemala Village Health, a Seattle-based nonprofit organization that has partnered with the SNHS for several years, as well as other local Guatemalan associates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hands-on service learning<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The plan for the two-week trip was to visit more than a dozen villages in Southeastern Guatemala to provide free health care to residents and information for local nurses, lay midwives and other health workers and promoters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Dr. Mabel Ezeonwu, the SNHS professor who leads the student groups, the goal is \u201cto expose students to global health work and to social determinants of health of rural Mayan populations in Guatemala. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStudents have the opportunity to gain hands-on service-learning experience by engaging in health education and health promotion for members of different Mayan communities that we work with,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the students, it\u2019s a once-in-a-lifetime experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou tell yourself it\u2019s going to be like camping, but it\u2019s so different,\u201d Schober said. \u201cThe climate is harsh, hot and humid. The rain pours all night, and it\u2019s torrential to the point where we were thinking the roads would be impassable. But our GVH team is filled with people who live in those villages and know the mountain and its roads like the back of their hands.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Leylani Blanco, senior in the BSN program, listening to a fetal heartbeat.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Invaluable local support<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even as the students gave Guatemalan villagers basic care and health care strategies \u2014 such as reminding them that medications must be taken fully even after symptoms subside \u2014 the students came to bond with and deeply appreciate the people they worked and lived with on the trip. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWorking with these villagers has been the most enjoyable part of the trip. You can clearly see from their body language and facial expressions that they are eager to learn more about their health and want to succeed in the new skills we are teaching them,\u201d Schober said. \u201cThis couldn\u2019t have been done without them and the villagers who cared for us when we stayed with them.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She added, \u201cThis trip has taught me to not only be grateful but to show gratitude for those who give their time and care to me and those around me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fedel Harness, a student in the Master of Nursing program, said that it was \u201ca great honor\u201d to work with the local partners. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is quite amazing to see how GVH has inserted themselves at the intersection where the needs of the patients exist \u2014 particularly those patients who live in the rural mountains of Guatemala \u2014 and the point at which the Guatemalan health care system has failed.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Working with these villagers has been the most enjoyable part of the trip. You can clearly see from their body language and facial expressions that they are eager to learn more about their health and want to succeed in the new skills we are teaching them. <\/p>\nKaila Schober, Nursing student<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Researching health issues<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The students\u2019 trip also included community research, with a focus on the assessment and management of chronic disease among the residents. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe examined the electronic medical records and analysis, and evaluated data from the last 10 years,\u201d said Harness. \u201cWe will present the results of this information within the complex number of issues that impact these people \u2014 in essence, the socioeconomic, cultural (language), religious, educational and historical dynamics that have to be accounted for when providing for the needs of the Indigenous Mayan citizens of Guatemala.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vi Nguyen, a Health Studies major, was involved with part of the group\u2019s research into the administration of the Ages and Stages questionnaire that assesses a baby\u2019s development. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe would ask the parent various questions about their child\u2019s developmental milestones and carefully record their responses, providing valuable insights into the child’s growth and progress,\u201d she said. \u201cWe then educated the parent on potential milestones their child should be meeting based on their needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy focusing on early identification of developmental delays and coming up with potential appropriate interventions,\u201d Nguyen added, \u201cthe long-term health outcomes of children in underserved areas could be significantly improved.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
A typical clinic station setup.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A busy schedule of care<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In a typical busy day visiting a village, Ezeonwu said, the students would counsel women on prenatal care and disease prevention, give children basic dental care and supplies, treat patients of all ages with acute or chronic health conditions, conduct lab work, and assess babies and young children for malnutrition and developmental health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe see all medical issues here,\u201d Harness wrote while onsite. \u201cChronic issues such as hypertension and diabetes. On the acute side, we might treat wound issues, acute asthma or skin rashes ranging from scabies to fungal infections \u2026 and distribute medications as needed.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nguyen said that it was memorable to see unity develop among the visiting UW Bothell team, the Guatemalan community and the Mayan community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTogether, we made meaningful changes to improve the health care system. As I interacted with the villagers and took their vitals, I realized the significance of being one of the first points of contact before they received care.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Breaking language barriers<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even the language barrier \u2014 among the students\u2019 biggest challenges \u2014 developed into a chance to further bond with local people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI <\/strong>don\u2019t speak Spanish, but regardless of that the people we were helping speak K\u2019iche (the local Mayan language) and very few of them also speak Spanish as their second language,\u201d Schober said. \u201cSo we ended up with an English-to-Spanish interpreter and a Spanish-to-K\u2019iche interpreter.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although some things got lost in translation, \u201cit\u2019s been a privilege to learn the language from them and the children,\u201d Schober said. \u201cJust like any new language we say or pronounce it wrong, and we all laugh, and the villagers continue to teach us.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nguyen overcame the language challenge in a similar way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe richness of diversity in the country and the warm and welcoming people made the experience truly fulfilling and eye-opening,\u201d she said. \u201cAlthough initially we struggled with language and cultural barriers, the support and acceptance from the locals was heartwarming, which helped me overcome my initial fears of stepping out of my comfort zone.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Amanda Sendele teaching some of the children in Guatemala.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A growing bond<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

During the entire trip, a sense of gratitude seemed to flow both ways between the students and their patients and hosts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nguyen, for one, said that she learned far more than just some Mayan words while serving this community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI learned their way of life and resilience despite the unfair disadvantages they have in the health care and political system,\u201d she said. \u201cInteracting with the Mayan communities exposed me to their rich history and cultural heritage, teaching me perseverance, community support and finding joy in the simplest of things. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTheir strength and dedication left a lasting impression on me, inspiring me to advocate for change and strive to make a positive impact in the lives of marginalized communities.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Schober wrote from Guatemala, \u201cIt feels like we are learning to be one community by sharing pieces of our culture with each other. We are developing trust and a bond that will hopefully last for years and lead to building healthy people and a healthy village. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI understand now what it means to say it takes a village \u2014 and to be a member of that village.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Guatemala service-learning experience is one of several UW Bothell <\/em>Study Abroad<\/em><\/a> programs, which sent 73 students in 2023 to Finland, Thailand, Japan and Europe as well. Participation numbers haven\u2019t yet reached pre-pandemic levels, but there is a resurgence in study-abroad activity in both programs and student interest, according to Natalia Dyba, director of <\/em>Global Initiatives<\/em><\/a>.<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nursing & Health Studies students work with Indigenous communities in Guatemala, learning as much as they teach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":29727,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[202,218,253,252,204,1],"tags":[],"school":[420],"class_list":["post-29716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-news","category-community-engagement","category-global-impact","category-population-health","category-students","category-uncategorized","school-school-of-nhs"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGratitude in Guatemala\u00a0 - News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/2023\/09\/14\/gratitude-in-guatemala\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gratitude in Guatemala\u00a0 - 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