Cerro Bonito, Cantarranas

  • Overview
  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Engineering
  • Water
  • Business
  • Public Health

Overview

Cerro Bonito is located in central Honduras, and is about 9 kilometers from Cantarranas, where community members have access to the health center. People in Cerro Bonito are primarily dedicated to agriculture and day labor.  Global Brigades is currently working with Medical and Dental Brigades in Cerro Bonito, and implementation of other programs as part of Global Brigades’ strategic plan in Honduras has just begun.

Municipality: Cantarranas

Department: Francisco Morazan

Homes : 122
Population : 300
Water System : Yes
Community Bank : Yes
Electricity : Yes
Health Center : No
Community Health Workers : Yes
% of Homes with Latrines : 94%
Education : Up to 9th Grade
Distance from Lodging Facility : 40 km

Medical

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

HEALTH CARE ACCESS

The Honduran government provides two different types of health centers throughout rural Honduras: Centros de Salud Médico Odontológico (CESAMOs) and Centros de Salud Rural (CESARs). CESAMOs are the larger of the two, often found in municipalities, and typically have at least one physician on staff at all times with nurses and potentially a dentist. CESARs are found sporadically in rural communities and generally have a single nurse available. Even with this coverage, it is important to note that medications, supplies, and materials are often not available in these health centers and the physician density in Honduras remains around 1,220 people for every one doctor. According to the World Health Organization, there should be a maximum of 435 people per physician to qualify a country as having adequate access to medical attention.

Cerro Bonito does not have its own health center, but travels to the nearby community, Cantarranas, in order to get health care. There, the health center is a CESAMO, a larger scale health center where doctors and occasionally dentists are on staff. The most common illnesses are diabetes, arterial hypertension, and respiratory infections.

13

Volunteers

78

Patient Consultations

4

Health Education Workshops

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS:

Cerro Bonito has one Community Health Worker. During their training, community members have learned how to provide care for some chronic illnesses, as well as about other health topics such as first aid, caring for pregnancies, and first response in emergency situations. With these skills, the CHWs help relieve some of the patient load for the staff in the health center by teaching preventative health.

Community Health Workers, or Guardianes de Salud, work on a volunteer basis as advocates for health care within their communities. While this is an existing program in Honduras and Guardianes de Salud are identified by other organizations and some health centers, Global Brigades is able to bridge gaps in access to training and provide more comprehensive technical skills. Our CHWs are some of the very few Guardianes de Salud to receive certification from the Honduran government. Our CHWs are tasked with treating and preventing common illnesses, and some of their responsibilities include first aid, supporting and caring for pregnancies and newborns, and responding to emergency situations. They are also responsible for following up with chronic patients to ensure proper administration of medications and treatments to avoid further complications. Additionally, CHWs provide support for brigades that are hosted in their area. At the completion of their training, CHWs are equipped with basic medical supplies and equipment provided by Global Brigades and its partners.

The presence of these volunteers and their advocacy for health within their community contributes to the sustainability of health care supported by Global Brigades’ Medical Program and is one of the most impactful disease prevention strategies in rural communities across the globe.

BRIGADE INFORMATION:

Medical Brigades have started in Cerro Bonito, but members of this partner community are also able to attend medical and dental clinics hosted in Chandala. For more information is available on the Chandala’s community profile. 

MEDICAL VOLUNTEERS IN CERRO BONITO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Eli Lilly Connecting Hearts Abroad Medical Brigade November 2023 13

Dental

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

DENTAL CARE ACCESS:

In working closely with the medical program, the dental program provides fillings, extractions, and fluoride treatments as a standard part of Medical Brigades. Most community members do not have regular access to dental care due to the lack of dentist within a reasonable distance.

46

Patient Consultations

21

Flouride Treatments

4

Dental Education Workshops

BRIGADE INFORMATION:

Medical Brigades have started in Cerro Bonito, but members of this partner community are also able to attend medical and dental clinics hosted in Chandala. For more information is available on the Chandala’s community profile. 

MEDICAL VOLUNTEERS IN CERRO BONITO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Eli Lilly Connecting Hearts Abroad Medical Brigade November 2023 13

Engineering

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

CERRO BONITO’S ENGINEERING CHALLENGE:

Cerro Bonito’s currently has an outdated water system that was constructed in 1988. Since 2008, the system has not been able to provide suffiencient water to provide for the community member’s water needs. The system has two 5,000 gallon tanks attached to it but only one is functioning. In addition to this the water source is polluted with garbage from the community.

18

Volunteers

367

Beneficiaries

2

Kilometers of Pipeline Designed

8

Average Community Volunteers

CERRO BONITO’S ENGINEERING SOLUTION

Global Brigades, following recommendations and the design report from Engineering Brigades plans to begin construction of a new water system as soon as possible. The plan is to construct a new gravity water system that will connect to a 10,000-gallon storage tank with chlorinator to provide water for the communities current and future needs. Global Brigades will allow train a water council, and a maintenance person to ensure the longevity of the water system. 

ENGINEERING VOLUNTEERS IN CERRO BONITO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Arizona Engineering Brigade& Pennsylvania State University Engineering Brigade March 2019 18

Water

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

CERRO BONITO’S WATER CHALLENGE:

Global Brigades is working on the implementation of the Holistic Model in Cerro Bonito, but has not yet begun with the Water Program. Now in the planning phase, the implementation of any improvements to the community’s existing water system will follow the Engineering Program’s assessment and start as soon as feasible.

Water System : Yes
Type of System : Gravity Water Tank with a Pump
Homes with Access to Water : N/A
Water Council : Yes

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

CERRO BONITO’S ECONOMIC  CHALLENGE:

Global Brigades worked with community members of Cerro Bonito to establish a community bank within the community. This community bank has 13 members and is currently awaiting matching capitalization. The bank members are receiving follow-up training on skills they identify alongside Global Brigades.

13

Brigade Volunteers

29

Loans Disbursed

8

Savings Accounts Opened

$1,076

Capital Invested

CERRO BONITO’S MICRO-FINANCE SOLUTION

In 2018, Global Brigades worked alongside Cerro Bonito to establish a community bank. The bank has 9 female and 4 male shareholders, and the members meet in the bank’s own structure every month. They are able to offer loans and savings accounts to community members so that families can plan and stabilize their finances. This is especially beneficial for farmers, who can take out loans to invest in their agricultural production and pay them back after the harvest. Loans allow many subsistence farmers to not only consume the crops they harvest but also earn an income from selling their excess.

BUSINESS VOLUNTEERS IN CERRO BONITO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee February 2019 13

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

CERRO BONITO’S PUBLIC HEALTH  CHALLENGE:

Many community members in Cerro Bonito lack the resources to make improvements to their household infrastructure. The majority of homes in Cerro Bonito are made of adobe. There are approximately 122 homes in Cerro Bonito, with approximately 300 people living in the community. Hygiene stations, which include showers and water storage units, are necessary to facilitate handwashing, allow water storage for hygienic processes, and offer privacy while bathing. Additionally, eco-stoves evacuate smoke from the living space and decrease the risk of respiratory illnesses, and latrines improve hygiene practices and prevent contamination of natural water sources caused by open defecation. By partnering with Global Brigades’ Public Health Program, Cerro Bonito‘s inhabitants are hoping to avoid preventable diseases and adopt proper hygiene and sanitation practices.

766

Volunteers

77

Sanitation Units Installed

323

People Benefitted with PH Infrastructure

12

Public Health Educational Workshops

CERRO BONITO’S PUBLIC HEALTH  SOLUTION

Public Health Brigaders from several different universities and the Public Health Brigades in-country team worked in Cerro Bonito from June 2018 to present. During this time, volunteers and staff members worked with alongside the community to identify community leaders and train them to form the Basic Sanitation Committee, increase cultural sensitivity and awareness by working side-by-side with qualified masons and project beneficiaries, conduct educational workshops emphasizing the importance of sanitation and hygiene in the local primary school, install water filters, and build eco-stoves, latrines, and water storage unit. The latrine and water filter projects were funded entirely by the community, while Global Brigades partnered with the community to subsidize the remainder of the projects with Cerro Bonito’s newly established community bank. The community bank provided access for families to take out loans for future home infrastructure projects, allowing community members to invest in the health of their own family without Global Brigades’ involvement. To ensure the sustainability of the projects constructed, the Public Health Program provides continuous follow-up in the community.

PUBLIC HEALTH VOLUNTEERS IN CERRO BONITO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of San Diego Medical Brigade & University of California Riverside Medical Brigade June 2018 51 Arizona State University Public Health Brigade July 2018 6
Texas A&M University Medical Brigade July 2018 38 University of Birmingham Medical Brigade & Memorial University of Newfoundland Medical Brigade Augsut 2018 45
Southeast Missouri State University Medical Brigade & San Jose State University Medical Brigade August 2018 28 Wayne State University Medical Brigade August 2018 27
University of the Pacific (Rho Pi Phi) Medical Brigade & California State University Los Angeles Medical Brigade August 2018 20 Imperial College London Water Brigade September 2018 7
DePaul University Public Health Brigade November 2018 17 Rice University Public Health Brigade December 2018 14
University of Southern California Medical Brigade December 2018 24 Mount Allison University Public Health Brigade February 2019 13
Milwaukee School of Engineering Medical Brigade February 2019 25 University of Washington Medical Brigade September 2019 33
Boston University Medical Brigade January 2020 23 Brown University Medical Brigade & Johns Hopkins University Medical Brigade January 2020 11
University of Victoria Medical Brigade February 2020 41 Northeastern University Public Health Brigade February 2020 13
University of New Brunswick Saint John Medical Brigade April 2023 18 Florida Gulf Coast University Medical Brigade May 2023 33
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine June 2023 15 University of Oklahoma Medical Brigade May 2023 20

Legal Empowerment

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

CERRO BONITO’S LEGAL EMPOWERMENT CHALLENGE

Legal services are difficult to access in rural Honduras for two primary reasons: location and cost. Most often, there are no legal services set up
within rural communities and are instead concentrated in urban areas.
Therefore, rural Hondurans must travel multiple hours to access these
services. Not only does traveling to these urban areas cost money, but the
legal services themselves are frequently too expensive.

In addition, there is an attitude of mistrust amongst the rural clients.
Therefore, it is a challenge to gain trust of the community members when it
comes to dealing with their personal legal empowerment issues and to prove not all lawyers will take advantage of them.

 

 

12

Volunteers

20

Legal Consultations Provided

N/A

Family Cases Resolved

26

Participants of Educational Workshops

Civic Engagement and Empowerment

By focusing on specific aspects of legal access and inclusion, Global Brigades’ Legal Empowerment Program aims to empower communities like Cerro Bonito to overcome the obstacles mentioned above. Starting in 2013, Brigaders have been able to tackle family law cases, execute pro-bono legal clinics, and perform educational workshops.

Family Law: The most common legal issues within the community include issues of alimony and childcare, land issues, domestic violence, and some violent crimes. Without a lawyer in the community, many legal issues go unresolved or unattended for many years, and seemingly simple legal troubles can go unanswered.

Legal Clinics: Global Brigade’s Legal Empowerment Program has been able to offer their pro-bono legal services to community members in Cerro Bonito with the help of Honduran lawyers as they are shadowed by volunteers. Both community members and volunteers work together to challenge the stigma of lawyers in the region by offering real, professional services for free.

Educational Workshops: Volunteers have performed workshops in the local school of Cerro Bonito. Capitalizing on the use of education as a tool for community empowerment, volunteers lead discussions and workshops with students and families about issues that have direct consequences and effects in their everyday lives, including: the right to education, child abuse, drug use, and child labor laws.

LEGAL EMPOWERMENT VOLUNTEERS IN CERRO BONITO:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Stetson University Legal Empowerment Brigade January 2020 12

Local Reference Points

View the map to see the closest volunteer lodging facilities, hospitals, and other relevant points of reference.

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