Supporting Nurse's Training for Women in Guatemala

The Kateri Fund is moving along with our new initiative to sponsor young women seeking training in the Healthcare field. The first recipient Josefina  has graduated as a practical nurse and has decided to give back to her community by opening a pharmacy with the support of her family. She will make medicine available in her village. Her neighbors will no longer need to make a trip to the larger town to secure medicine. Transportation is difficult in Guatemala.

For 2023 there are two young women in the program, Sandra and Sandy.

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This is Sandra’s second year in the program. She is studying at the Universidad Rafael Landivar and is beginning her fifth semester of a seven-semester course of professional nurse’s training. She continues studying weekends and working with her husband in the fields during the week to support her studies. The scholarship has eased the worry about paying the costs of her university fees and materials. Her goal is to graduate and provide healthcare services in her village.

Sandy is in a year program to train as a practical nurse. She is very excited to be studying and learning about anatomy and first aid. These are the first steps in her training. Her parents are very supportive. She has a distance to travel to get to school and has to leave early. Her parents get up early with her and prepare her breakfast and lunch. She will start her hospital practice the end of March.

KARYN CHOY JOINS THE STAFF

Karyn Choy has joined the Kateri Team as mentor for the two current young women in nurses' training, Sandra and Sandy and follow up for the young woman, Josefina, who graduated in January 2023 as a nursing assistant.

Karyn works with Maya Health Alliance | Wuqu' Kawoq based in Tecpan, Chimaltenango, Guatemala. Wuqu’ Kawoq provides health care mainly for the rural Indigenous population in the Guatemalan Highlands. She is Indigenous herself and so her background and life experience are similar to the young women she will be mentoring. She will provide them the emotional and academic support they need as they study the demanding nursing program.

Karyn has had her first meeting with the young women. She reports that they expressed gratitude for the support that she will be able to provide. Nurses’ training requires many hours of work in the classroom and in practical training in the hospital. They often get discouraged and need to have someone to talk to about their challenges. The class work is challenging as well and Karyn can help them understand the material that they have doubts about.

The program is off to a good start. The structure that is developing has three elements: The mentoring program with individual conferences, group meetings to develop a feeling of community, and individual projects working with the intern participants. We will write up the program in more detail and seek grant money and individual sponsors to expand the program for 2024.  

If you want to help, you can send a donation through GlobalGiving.  Recurring donations help us plan with assurance they we will have the funding we need.