The Pat Farry Rural Health Education Trust has announced application details for its Travelling Scholarship for 2019/20. The annual Pat Farry Rural Health Education Trust Travelling Scholarship awards up to $5,000.00 to one recipient. The scholarship aims to assist a medical student to travel internationally to a rural situation to observe new concepts, develop their own skills and share their learning with other students when they return.
My time in Guatamala is coming to an end now; my Spanish has improved, I have become part of the local football team and my days at the medical centre have been varied and very different from New Zealand.
Each day brings something new. Most days I take consultations, examine the patient and provide basic treatment where necessary.
I am living in Boloncó, a small village in the Alta Verapaz region. This region is known to be the poorest, and also the most dangerous region in Guatemala. The latter I have not experienced as of yet. The people here are beautiful; they are welcoming and kind. The closest town is Fray Bartalomé de las Casas, a 50 minute drive along a bumpy ‘road’. The area has a tropical rainforest climate and much of its economy has been built on the cultivation of palm oil. Much to my excitement, it is also well known for cacao and coffee plantations.
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My first impression of Guatemala was a good one. It is a beautiful country; it is mountainous, with terraced hills, numerous looming volcanoes, and diverse forests. Traffic is busy and chaotic, people are everywhere and food stalls; notably fruit, line the roadside. Churches stand tall in every town, Catholicism being the main religion here. And of course, a town is not complete without a football field, even if it does consist of a dirt patch with makeshift goals at times. I was looking forward to getting out the small football I carry with me everywhere when I travel. › Continue reading…
One of my favourite Spanish quotes is “Ponte Las Pilas”, which literally translates to “put in your batteries” and is akin to the English saying, “put your skates on and get cracking!”. It perfectly describes the first few weeks of my time in Trujillo, Peru. There has been no rest for the wicked and I have loved every moment of it.