© action medeor/Cristina Chiquín Info © action medeor/Cristina Chiquín Health in Guatemala Close-up Together with our partners in Guatemala, we are working to strengthen medical care in rural regions. Healthcare system in Guatemala: there is a lack of everything Martha is exhausted: caring for malnourished children, examining pregnant women and handing out medication - the young nurse has her hands full as she looks after three village communities in Chimaltenango alone. Trained specialists like her are often the only chance of reliable medical treatment for the rural population of Guatemala. Hospitals are hours away and traditional local health workers may treat simple illnesses, but they usually lack the knowledge and equipment to diagnose and treat serious cases. Better equipment for better first aid Guatemala is one of the ten countries most affected by the consequences of climate change: Floods destroy paths, roads and fields, droughts destroy harvests. These devastating extreme weather events continue to cost lives. For this reason, action medeor forms local working groups to jointly develop preparedness and emergency plans to protect themselves and other members of the community. The emergency is tested with everyone involved. Little support, great poverty: In many rural areas of Guatemala, people live in extremely difficult conditions. Food is scarce, extreme weather causes ever greater damage and even easily treatable diseases such as respiratory infections lead to many deaths. Why don't people move away? “Their poverty forces them to stay in these places,” Dr. Hugo Icú Perén from ASECSA, action medeor's local partner, explains. “That's why we empower the communities to analyze their problems themselves and support them in finding solutions.” How your donation helps - worldwide: Your donation helps to provide urgently needed medical equipment for Guatemalan village communities so that people do not have to die from easily treatable diseases. You will also help people to arm themselves against the deadly threat of extreme weather events.