10,000 people rely on this clinic

In 2008, when we arrived at El Centro de Salud de Leymebamba, the emergency room was a stack of gauze, some syringes, a handful of sutures, a few
vials of antibiotics and two bottles of rubbing alcohol.
A one year old child died of preventable pneumonia that morning, and there was no medical equipment
or the medication needed to save him.

 

In partnership with the Leymebamba clinic team, Hatun Runa provided equipment and supplies 

to create a full labor and delivery room, laboratory, exam rooms, and basic emergency room. We also
provided hospital furniture and for the local health worker training institute, medical teaching materials. 

 

Improved healthcare is particularly important in the Northern Andes. Pregnancies and the neonatal period present many risks and complications due to poor nutrition, difficulty reaching many pregnant women, and teenage pregnancy. Respiratory infections and asthma are caused by unvented cooking fires, especially in children and the elderly.  Gastrointestinal infections are common due to the lack of clean water and sanitation.

 

 Poor nutrition, including the lack of micronutrients like vitamin A, zinc and iron, leads to stunted growth in approximately 60% of the children, and increases susceptibility to infections. The recent increase in commercial foods and loss of knowledge about local Andean crops have led to an increase in obesity, diabetes, hypertension and heart disease -- mirroring
the problems in industrialized countries like the USA.

 

Hatun Runa is working on all of these issues, from 
upgrades to the clinic in Leymebamba to training 
families in sustainable agriculture and relearning how to grow the same foods that sustained their ancestors
1,000 years ago!