Many of the rural communities in Honduras lack daily access to clean water. Those with access to local water sources face shortages due to structural failures that shut down distribution for days on end. Others are forced to resort to unclean water sources.

In May, Brigade members, Carrie Alexander, Betty Martin, and Mary Ellen Gannon traveled to Honduras to spend time in the remote villages. After a physical absence since February 2020 due to COVID, the goal was to visit the communities sponsored by the Brigade and provide education to the Community Health Workers.

Recently, the Brigade was invited to a Washington Post Live event featuring conversations with leading health experts on the issues of health equity, vaccine access, and the disparities that have come into focus since the start of the pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brigade has learned to serve from afar by raising money for equipment and PPE not only for the hospitals but for the major COVID-19 triage center in Comayagua. Last year, we sent a 40-foot shipping container filled with donated and purchased COVID-19 related equipment and supplies to Comayagua.

Modern healthcare is a minefield of challenges. Patients lack access to care, choose between food and medication, struggle with high deductible health plans, or have no insurance at all. Clinicians are stretched thin by exhaustive documentation requirements and dispersed geographic coverage yet obligated to provide the highest quality medical care.

Under the guidance of volunteer Dr. Dean Smith, the VHC Medical Brigade is embarking on its first telehealth pilot for cataract surgeries on our upcoming November 6-10 Surgical Brigade trip to Honduras.

The VHC Medical Brigade mourns the loss of Elizabeth Koop, MS, CRNA, known to all as Betsy. She was one of the original volunteers in the Brigade and a founding member of the Rural Village Project (RVP), which has provided clinics, clean water and health education to communities in remote areas of Honduras.

In an October 2020 report, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development noted there was “substantial evidence that middle and low-income countries have been largely priced out of access to Covid-19 related products.”¹ Among those less fortunate countries is Honduras.

Armed with machetes, five Hondureños make their way up the face of El Montañon – The Big Mountain. It’s the dry season in Honduras, and it’s hot; the men keep to the edge of a stream, sometimes singing, sometimes talking, but never resting. Two hours into their hike, they find their destination blocked by tropical vines and dense jungle growth. They get out their machetes.

Despite the inability to travel to Honduras during this pandemic, the VHC Medical Brigade continues to seek ways to provide for our partners in Comayagua and in the remote villages. Most recently, our team sent a 40-foot container filled with donated supplies and equipment from our warehouse in Virginia for use in local hospitals (La Paz, Hospital Escuela, San Benito Jose, and Sta Teresa) and in clinics (El Ayudante and RVP clinics).