El Ocote

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

Overview

El Ocote is a small, tight-knit community tucked into the mountains of Francisco Morazán and surrounded by trees and vegetation. It is 10 km from the nearest town, which most community members travel to by foot. The principal economic activity in El Ocote is agriculture: corn and beans are cultivated by both men and women, and some children and teens are also involved in the process. Some community members work in a local sugar cane farm harvesting the plant.

Municipality: Cantarranas
Department: Francisco Morazán

Homes : 66
Population : 309
Water System : Yes
Community Bank : Yes
Electricity : Yes
Health Center : No
Community Health Workers : Yes
% of Homes with Latrines : 92%
Education : Up to 6th Grade
Distance from Lodging Facility : 1 hr 30 min

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 at around 1,220 people for every 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.

El Ocote does not have its health center, but travels to the nearby municipality, Cantarranas, to get health care. There, the health centre is CESAMO, a larger scale health center where doctors and occasionally dentists are on staff. The trip can take up to 2 hours on foot. The main health concerns of the community are diabetes, arthritis, diarrhea, and hypertension.

294

Volunteers

1,580

Patient Consultations

156

Vision Screenings Provided

67

Health Education Workshops

COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS:

Community Health Workers in El Ocote were trained by Global Brigades starting in October of 2015. The Community Health Workers help to provide basic medical attention in the absence of the nurse in the Community Health Center. CHWs help to treat and prevent common illnesses and address other health topics such as first aid, caring for pregnancies, and first response in emergency situations. Patients with chronic illnesses in El Ocote have reported receiving better follow-up care because of the program.

BRIGADE INFORMATION:

Medical Brigades use the local school as their brigade site. The school has 2 rooms, where the various medical stations are conducted. Doctors spend an average of 10 minutes with each patient and we are able to provide 10 educational charlas a day.

  • AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED: 234
  • NEARBY COMMUNITIES: TRIJITO, ZARZAL, GUARICAYAN, TOMATIN, BARTOLOI, CERRO BONITO, COFRADIA, SUYAPA

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN EL OCOTE

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Southern California Medical Brigade January 2015 23 Pennsylvania State University Medical Brigade May 2015 36
Chabot College Medical Brigade & Duke University Medical Brigade January 2016 36 University of Victoria Medical Brigade February 2017 23
Southeast Missouri State University Medical Brigade June 2017 20 Castleton University Medical Brigade March 2018 30
Virginia Tech University Medical Brigade January 2019 34 Dalhousie University Medical Brigade May 2019 36
Vanderbilt University Medical Brigade March 2020 20 Florida Gulf Coast University Medical Brigade May 2023 17

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.

229

Patient Consultations

191

Number of Extractions

81

Fillings Performed

35

Dental Education Workshops

BRIGADE INFORMATION:

Medical Brigades use the local school as their brigade site. The school has 2 rooms, where the various medical stations are conducted. Doctors spend an average of 10 minutes with each patient and we are able to provide 10 educational charlas a day.

  • AVERAGE PATIENTS ATTENDED: 234
  • NEARBY COMMUNITIES: TRIJITO, ZARZAL, GUARICAYAN, TOMATIN, BARTOLOI, CERRO BONITO, COFRADIA, SUYAPA

MEDICAL/DENTAL VOLUNTEERS IN EL OCOTE:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Southern California Medical Brigade January 2015 23 Pennsylvania State University Medical Brigade May 2015 36
Chabot College Medical Brigade & Duke University Medical Brigade January 2016 36 University of Victoria Medical Brigade February 2017 23
Southeast Missouri State University Medical Brigade June 2017 20 Castleton University Medical Brigade March 2018 30
Virginia Tech University Medical Brigade January 2019 34 Dalhousie University Medical Brigade May 2019 36
Vanderbilt University Medical Brigade March 2020 20 Florida Gulf Coast University Medical Brigade May 2023 17

Engineering

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL OCOTE’S ENGINEERING CHALLENGE:

Prior to Global Brigades’ arrival in the community, El Ocote had a water system, but it was not large enough to meet the community’s needs. The system utilized a well situated 800 meters from the community, but that source only provided 2.6 gallons of water per minute in the summer taking more than 20 hours to fill the 3,000-gallon storage tank which served the entire community. Thus, community members only had access to water for roughly twenty minutes each day.

Without an adequate supply of water, community members had to forgo many basic hygiene and sanitation practices that would have helped protect their health. Yet, people were still paying a water fee of 15 Lempiras, or US $0.75, each month despite the sub-par service. Further endangering their health, few community members consumed treated water. There was no centralized treatment system and the existing storage tank was not equipped with a chlorinator to treat the water before consuming it.

N/A

Volunteers

215

Beneficiaries

10

Kilometers of Pipeline Designed

N/A

Average Community Volunteers

EL OCOTE’S ENGINEERING SOLUTION:

Water Brigaders from several different universities worked in El Ocote from August 2014 to November 2014. Throughout this time, volunteers worked with community members to:
• Build 2 dams at 2 different water sources
• Construct a 10,000-gallon storage tank with a chlorinator
• Dig approximately 10,000 meters of a trench and lay a pipeline
• Connect approximately 62 houses, 2 churches, and 1 school
• Provide educational seminars to children in the community on water and health-related topics to ensure the sustainability of the project, a new seven-member Water Council was established and trained by Water Brigades in addition to a Basic Sanitation Committee also subpar by Water Brigades.

When Water Brigades first approached the community of El Ocote a dire water need was observed. The existing system was not meeting community needs and community members recognized the need to construct a new system. They immediately demonstrated their desire for water through their collaboration and dedication to the project.

Water

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL OCOTE’S WATER CHALLENGE:

Before Global Brigades arrived in the community, El Ocote had a water system, but it was not large enough to meet the community’s needs. The system utilized a well situated 800 meters from the community, but that source only provided 2.6 gallons of water per minute in the summer taking more than 20 hours to fill the 3,000-gallon storage tank which served the entire community. Thus, community members only had access to water for roughly twenty minutes each day.

Without an adequate supply of water, community members had to forgo many basic hygiene and sanitation practices that would have helped protect their health. Yet, people were still paying a water fee of 15 Lempiras, or US $0.75, each month despite the sub-par service. Further endangering their health, few community members consumed treated water. There was no centralized treatment system and the existing storage tank was not equipped with a chlorinator to treat the water before consuming it.

304

Volunteers

215

Project Beneficiaries

10

Kilometers of Piping Installed

10,000

Storage Tank Volume (gallons)

EL OCOTE’S WATER SOLUTION:

Water Brigaders from several different universities worked in El Ocote from August 2014 to November 2014. Throughout this time, volunteers worked with community members to:
• Build 2 dams at 2 different water sources
• Construct a 10,000 gallon storage tank with chlorinator
• Dig approximately 10,000 meters of trench and lay pipeline
• Connect approximately 62 houses, 2 churches, and 1 school
• Provide educational seminars to children in the community on water and health related topics

To ensure the sustainability of the project, a new seven member Water Council was established and trained by Water Brigades in addition to a Basic Sanitation Committee also trained by Water Brigades. When Water Brigades first approached the community of El Ocote a dire water need was observed. The existing system was not meeting community needs and community members recognized the need to construct a new system. They immediately demonstrated their desire for water through their collaboration and dedication to the project.

WATER VOLUNTEERS IN EL OCOTE:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Miami Professionals Water Brigade August 2014 4 University of New Brunswick Fredericton Water Brigade August 2014 15
California State Polytechnic University Pomona Water Brigade September 2014 8 Dublin City University Water Brigade October 2014 21

Business

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL OCOTE’S ECONOMIC CHALLENGE:

The principal economic activity in El Ocote is agriculture: corn and beans are cultivated by both men and women, and some children and teens are also involved in the process. Some community members work in a local sugar cane farm harvesting the plant. The average family income is about US $100 per month.

20

Volunteers

592

Loans Disbursed

29

Savings Accounts Opened

$1,480

Capital Invested

EL OCOTE’S MICRO-FINANCE SOLUTION:

In December of 2016, Global Brigades worked alongside El Ocote to establish their community bank. The bank has 9 female and 7 male shareholders who 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.

EL OCOTE’S BUSINESS SOLUTION:

The next step for El Ocote will be to grow the existing grain store in the community and potentially establish another micro-enterprise that can bring more capital into the community. The Global Brigades business team looks forward to working with the grain store and will soon host Business Brigades in El Ocote to study the local market and identify potential business opportunities for the community.

BUSINESS VOLUNTEERS IN EL OCOTE:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Johns Hopkins University Graduate School Engineering Brigade January 2018 8
Milwaukee School of Engineering Public Health Brigade February 2018 12

Public Health

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL OCOTE’S PUBLIC HEALTH  CHALLENGE:

Many community members in El Ocote lacked the resources needed to improve their homes and prevent diseases caused by unsafe living conditions.  The majority of homes were made of adobe, straw, and mud, and no homes had hygiene stations, water filters  or eco-stoves prior to the arrival of Global Brigades.  Such living conditions triggered disease.  The lack of hygiene stations led to high rates of diarrhea and water-borne disease, the absence of cement floors caused parasitic infection and Chagas Disease, and the lack of eco-stoves resulted in respiratory problems in many community members.

Although community members recognized the problems inherent to their living environments, they did not have the economic resources nor the technical knowledge needed to address them. It also was necessary to increase the level of awareness concerning sanitation and the importance of health in the community.

476

Volunteers

76

Sanitation Units Installed

420

People Benefited with Public Health Infrastructure

21

Hours of Public Health Education

EL OCOTE’S PUBLIC HEALTH SOLUTION:

Public Health Brigaders from several different universities and the Public Health Brigades in-country team worked in El Ocote in May 2017. During this time, volunteers and staff members worked with community members 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, and build eco-stoves, latrines, water storage units, and water filters.

The community received a donation from the Honduran Government to cover the costs of the pila and the shower. The rest of the projects were funded through a subsidy program with the newly established community bank in El Ocote. Although Global Brigades subsidized a portion of the project cost, each family was expected to take out a loan with the community bank and pay back approximately 25% of the total project cost over time. This was a great way for community members to invest in the health of their own families and to encourage their use and trust of the newly established bank.

To ensure the sustainability of the in-home infrastructure projects, the Public Health Program provides continuous follow-up in the community. It also forms and trains the Basic Sanitation Committee, a community body formed by local leaders, which monitors the correct usage and maintenance of the new infrastructure. Clear responsibilities and powers are assigned to each member, making the beneficiaries themselves an even stronger stakeholder in the Public Health projects.

PUBLIC HEALTH VOLUNTEERS IN EL OCOTE:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
Acadia University Public Health Brigade April 2017 14 University of New Brunswick Fredericton Public Health Brigade April 2017 22
University of Calgary Public Health Brigade & University of Toronto Public Health Brigade April 2017 14 University of Pittsburgh Public Health Brigade May 2017 15
Pennsylvania State University Public Health Brigade & University of Michigan Public Health Brigade May 2017 19 University of Calgary Public Health Brigade & University of Toronto Public Health Brigade May 2017 24
Johns Hopkins University Public Health Brigade & University of California Berkeley Public Health Brigade & University of Pennsylvania Public Health Brigade May 2017 16

Legal Empowerment

Program Status

  • Planning
  • Active
  • Complete

EL OCOTE’S LEGAL EMOWERMENT 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 travelling 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 the trust of the community members when it
comes to dealing with their legal empowerment issues and to prove not all lawyers will take advantage of them.

27

Volunteers

11

Legal Consultations Provided

1

Family Cases Resolved

102

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 El Ocote 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 El Ocote 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 El Ocote. 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 EL OCOTE:

Chapter Date # Of Volunteers Chapter Date # Of Volunteers
University of Connecticut Legal Empowerment Brigade & University of Southern California Legal Empowerment Brigade May 2018 16 University of Southern California Legal Empowerment Brigade May 2019 11

Local Reference Points

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

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