Seconded By: John McDermott,
Central American Medical Outreach is a small non-profit organization based in Ohio. It has invested in American volunteers’ hearts and medical talents to help the people in the little town of Santa Rosa de Copan in Honduras.
CAMO provides medical care primarily through Neurosurgery and Optomology. However, it is also strong in Dental, Prosthetics, Urology, Respiratory, Literature, and more, including year-round education and hands-on training in the trades. CAMO sends a medical team from the United States twice a year to work with their Honduran counterparts to help as many as they can.
My first trip with CAMO was in 2014. I was immediately hooked and told Kathy Tschiegg, the founding director, that I would volunteer whenever they needed me. Many other volunteers and I travel to this small town nestled in the mountains of Copan in March and October. I now have 21 trips logged in to Santa Rosa de Copan. The documentation I provide covers all the areas I mentioned. The images I make go to CAMO to help inform donors of the immense importance of continuing support for the organization, allowing these incredibly talented doctors to perform their work and help bring respect and dignity to Hondurans nationwide. The heartfelt joy we all get from seeing the improvement of all patients is overwhelming at times. It is a no-brainer to decide to return over and over to help in any way I can.
From my trips to Santa Rosa, I have made so many friends, and I consider them my second family and second home. Many have offered up their homes for free for me to stay in during my sometimes six-week stays as an alternative to paying for the hotel. I am proud to be a part of this team of volunteers.
Dental Exam
Staff at Central American Medical Outreach dental team examine elementary school kids to determine their needs before seeing the volunteer dentists, local and from the Untied States, at a school outside of Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras, Feb 21, 2014.
Peeking Curiosity
Young kids peek in a window while a volunteer neurosurgeon team members from the United States working with Central American Medical Outreach, consult with each other about patients at Occidente Hospital in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras November 2, 2014. Photo Ken Cedeño
Here to Help You
Plastic surgeon Dr. Greg Pearson, examines Maria Francis Aleman Guardado during consultation before performing cleft palette and lip surgery at Occidente Hospital in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras February 19, 2017. Guardado and her family of six only made eleven cents a day. They would have to sacrifice food for the rest of their family, already suffering from signs of malnutrition, to make it possible for Guardado to travel for medical care. Guardado, who is incredibly shy due to her physical impairment, always held her hand in front of her mouth even when she wasn’t speaking. Today, Guardado is doing better but still has a long way to go. She needs to undertake physical speech therapy, extreme dental work, and psychological treatment to get her to adapt to society better.
Cleft Surgery
Dr. Greg Pearson and his team perform cleft palette and lip surgery on Maria Francis Aleman Guardado at Occidente Hospital in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras February 20, 2017. Guardado and her family of six only made eleven cents a day. They would have to sacrifice food for the rest of their family, already suffering from signs of malnutrition, to make it possible for Guardado to travel for medical care. Guardado, who is incredibly shy due to her physical impairment, always held her hand in front of her mouth even when she wasn’t speaking. Today, Guardado is doing better but still has a long way to go. She needs to undertake physical speech therapy, extreme dental work, and psychological treatment to get her to adapt to society better.
You
Maria Francis Aleman Guardado, 11, poses two days after her surgery to repair her cleft lip and palette at Occidente Hospital in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras Feb. 22, 2017. Guardado and her family of six only made eleven cents a day. They would have to sacrifice food for the rest of their family, already suffering from signs of malnutrition, to make it possible for Guardado to travel for medical care. Guardado, who is incredibly shy due to her physical impairment, always held her hand in front of her mouth even when she wasn’t speaking. Today, Guardado is doing better but still has a long way to go. She needs to undertake physical speech therapy, extreme dental work, and psychological treatment to get her to adapt to society better.
Back Surgery
Neurologists Dr. Roberto Alvarez left, and Dr. JC Tabet, right, a volunteer from the United States working with Central American Medical Outreach, perform back surgery on a patient at Hospital Occidente, in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras, October 17, 2022. CAMO has immensely helped thousands of patients throughout Honduras for the past 35 years.
Neuro Team at Work
Neurologists Dr. Roberto Alvarez and Dr. JC Tabet, a volunteer with CAMO, work on patients performing back surgery at Hospital Occidente, in Santa Rosa de Copan October 17, 2022. CAMO has immensely helped thousands of patients throughout Honduras for the past 35 years.
Eye Exam
Ophthalmologists working with CAMO, Central American Medical Outreach, examine a patient with congenital disease called Coloboma, at a local elementary school outside of Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras, February 16, 2023. Coloboma is an eye condition that people are born with. It happens when part of the tissue that makes up the eye is missing.
Cataract Surgery
Ophthalmologists working with CAMO, Central American Medical Outreach, perform cataract surgery on a patient at Robles Ophthalmology Center in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras, February 22, 2023. CAMO, Central American Medical Outreach operates on patients.Cataract surgery takes an average of 15 minutes and is a common problem for Hondurans. Many go on with life suffering for decades because they have no means for help. CAMO provides that surgery for them at little to no cost.
Check the Xray
Dr. Roberto Alvarez, a local neurologist and volunteer for Central American Medical Outreach, operates on four month old Maria Esmerelda Reyes at Occidente Hospital in Santa Rosa de Copan, Honduras on Feb. 10, 2017.
