Hiking back from our team building day planting trees in the community of Chuatzunuj. 

Hello!

I'm pleased to share our Fall 2022 update.

We have been busier than ever this summer. Fighting malnutrition continues to be a major focus. We are attacking this crisis on all levels: working one-on-one with families, launching a nutrition master class to train health workers across Guatemala, and advocating for national policy changes to prioritize better nutrition for our children. In June, the team spent a day planting trees to help nurture the health of our planet, another key to reducing food shortages and addressing many other health issues.  

Read on for details about this month's Nourish the Future Campaign. One of our wonderful supporters has offered up to $20,000 in matching funds! We need your help to raise a total of $40,000 to help 550 children recover from malnutrition.

We also are very proud and excited to share our 2021 Annual Report

I hope that your fall is off to a happy and healthy start!

Warm wishes,

- Anne Kraemer, Executive Director

 

Using household items to demonstrate portion size.

PARTNERING WITH FAMILIES TO END HUNGER

Rising costs of food, fuel, and fertilizers are driving basic expenses beyond the reach of most families; some 4.6 million Guatemalans cannot access enough food to remain healthy. More than 40 percent of children in the regions where we work are suffering from acute malnutrition, according to a report published August 17 in Prensa Libre, one of Guatemala’s major newspapers.

In the past, most of the children we care for have had chronic rather than acute malnutrition. While chronic malnutrition is a significant concern, as it can limit brain development and have lifelong consequences for a child’s health, education, and future prospects, acute malnutrition is life-threatening.

Our nutrition technicians are in the field doing everything they can to help families find ways to keep their babies fed and healthy. They offer one-on-one counseling for caregivers and develop personalized plans for each child. In response to feedback from mothers, our nutrition technicians are now using common household items such as mugs, bowls, and different sized fruits to make it easier to understand recommendations for portion sizes. This is just one example of the importance of partnering with families to help achieve the best possible results. Find out more below about this month’s fundraising campaign to help more children recover from malnutrition. 

 

Help us fight malnutrition!

 

JOIN THE FIGHT AGAINST MALNUTRITION!

As Executive Director Anne Kraemer describes in this short video, millions of children in Guatemala are suffering from hunger; the rate of malnutrition in the rural communities where we work is as high as 70%. We're determined to spare as many children as possible from the lifelong effects of chronic malnutrition. You can help by joining our 40 for 550: Nourish the Future campaign.  

Through October 15, 2022, help us meet our goal of raising $20,000 to meet a generous 1:1 match!

We aim to raise a total of $40,000 to cover six months of food and other nutrients to help 550 children recover from malnutrition.

Join the campaign: our kids are counting on us!

 

Click on the image for Anne's video update. 

 
 

WELCOME, DR. MARCELA COLOM

We're thrilled to announce our newest Board Member, Marcela Colom, a Guatemalan family physician currently practicing in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Dr. Colom obtained her Medical Doctor degree from Universidad Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala City in 2016 and completed residency training in family and community medicine at the University of New Mexico. She got to know Maya Health | Wuqu' Kawoq while working with our women’s health programs. 

I joined the board because I have seen the impact Wuqu' Kawoq's work has on individual patients' lives and in communities in rural Guatemala, and I want to support their work.

- Dr. Marcela Colom 

 

CHECK OUT OUR 2021 ANNUAL REPORT!

In honor of our 15th year, discover 15 ways that we deliver high-quality healthcare and build health equity in rural Guatemala!

The secret to our sustainability, growth, and success all these years has been partnering with local communities and supporting the health professionals who are from those communities to deliver services and build systems that lead to better health and well-being for everyone.
- Brent Henderson, US Board Chair

 
 

PRESENTATIONS & PUBLICATIONS

Health Update to G13 Executive Director Anne Kraemer and Medical Director Dr. Waleska López Canu, along with Health Minister Dr. Francisco José Come Martín, provided an update on the health situation in Guatemala to a convening of G13 ambassadors at the home of US Ambassador to Guatemala William Popp. G13 is a forum of countries and multilateral organizations representing the largest donors supporting the development of Guatemala.

UN Scaling up Nutrition Research Manager Dr. Gabriela Montenegro presented at Guatemala's July meeting of experts and policy makers for Scaling Up Nutrition, a global initiative to address malnutrition. Presenters underscored the need to develop a coordinated response to this growing problem, especially in the first two years of life. 

Using Social Media to Increase Vaccine Confidence in Marginalized and Underserved Communities Awards and Partnerships Manager Emily López shared learnings from our work providing Covid vaccine information in Mayan languages via social media at this August Insights Dialogue sponsored by the Sabin Vaccine Institute and Bay Area Global Health Alliance.

Rural-Urban Differences in Diabetes Care and Control in 42 Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Cross-sectional Study of Nationally Representative Individual-Level Data. Flood D, Geldsetzer P, Agoudavi K, Aryal K, Caldeira L, Brian G, Dorobantu M, Farzadfar F, Gheorghe-Fronea O, Gurung M, Guwatudde D,Houehanou C, Adelin,  Kondal D, Labadarios D, Marcus M, Mayige M, Moghimi M, Norov B, Perman G, Quesnel-Crooks S, Rashidi M, Moghaddam S, Seiglie J, Karaireho S, Steinbrook E, Theilmann M, Ware L, Vollmer S, Atun R, Davies J, Ali M, Rohloff P, Manne-Goehler J. Diabetes Care. September 2022.

Engaging the Guatemala Scientific Diaspora: The Power of Networking and Shared Learning Bonilla K, Romero-Oliva C, Arrechea S, Ortiz N, Mazariegos F, Alonzo M, Orellana-Corrales G, del Valle A, Montenegro-Bethancour G. Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analysis. 7:897670.

 

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Thank you so much for your ongoing support!

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Maya Health Alliance | Wuqu' Kawoq
PO BOX 91  | Bethel, Vermont 05032-0091
513-393-9878 | development@wuqukawoq.org

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