Global Brigades’ Patient Referral Program helps to raise funds to connect rural community members in Honduras who are seen on Medical Brigades with conditions that need additional care outside of the scope of Brigades with the health resources they need.
Meet Medardo Arguijo Carranza: Medardo is a patient suffering from Parkinson’s disease. The Patient Referral Program has been raising funds to help ensure that Medardo has a steady supply of medicine to help manage his condition.
Update: On August 4th, the Patient Referral System team re-visited Medardo’s home in Yamaguare, a rural community in Honduras, to meet with him and give him more medication. Thomas Young, a physician’s assistant who attended a Medical Brigade last year with UC Berkeley, has been providing Medardo with Parkinson’s medication periodically for the last year. Recently, with the help of UC Berkely as well as DePaul University, Thomas was able to connect with a pharmaceutical company that was able to provide a year’s supply of Parkinson’s medication at a very discounted price. With the money that the dedicated students were able to fundraise, Global Brigades was able to transfer the funds to pay for the medication. A staff member was able to transport the medication from the United States to Honduras and it is now in the hands of Medardo and his family.
Medardo was extremely grateful for our visit and expressed how he truly confides in Global Brigades and is very thankful for all that the students, medical professionals, and staff have done for him. We at Global Brigades would like to express our gratitude for the efforts of all involved in this case. We would like to sincerely thank all of the donors and those who supported and continue to support this patient.
Medardo and his wife at their home.
Meet Greicy Pastrana: Greicy is a 13-year-old girl who suffers from Albinism.
On August 18th, the Patient Referral System team visited Greicy Pastrana’s home in Santa Rosa Guinope, a rural community in Honduras. Greicy is a 13-year-old girl with Albinism. Because of the disorder, Greicy suffers from poor vision and very sensitive skin. Global Brigades was able to use money from our general fund to buy her glasses, which she will wear constantly to help keep her eyes from worsening, and sunblock, to help protect her skin from the strong Honduran sun. Greicy and her family were very grateful for these things and were relieved to know that Greicy can now effectively help her mother more with cooking and taking care of the younger children of the house now that she can see more clearly. Greicy’s case has been successfully closed but Global Brigades will continue to check in with her and her family to make sure the glasses are helping and to monitor her supply of sunblock.
Griecy with GB Staff Member.
Meet Dilcia Ruiz:
In June 2011, the Medical Brigade group from the University of Michigan met a woman by the name of Dilcia Valerio Ruiz in the community of Joya Grande, Honduras. After visiting the gynecology station, it was confirmed that this woman has a polyp on her cervix and a significant lump in her breast. Dilcia has received a referral to a clinic in the past but never went because she knew that if she received bad news, she wouldn’t be able to pay for any kind of treatment. While cancer treatment is a very complicated and costly pursuit and the Referral System does not yet have the capacity to do it on its own, we would like to at least help Delcia take the first steps towards a proper diagnosis. Dilcia knows that there may be bad news but she would like to at least know what she has, which is knowledge that she has been denying herself for months due to her inability to pay. With your help of raising $600, we can provide Dilcia with an initial visit to the doctor and a diagnosis. This money would cover the logistics of the visit (i.e. transportation and gas) as well as any lab tests that may be necessary, and a possible overnight stay in the city. Any amount counts and will help to provide Dilcia with the answers she has been looking for. We thank you in advance for your support for this case. Please visit http://www.globalbrigades.org/?page_id=3139 for information on how you can make a donation and support this case.
