Skilled Medical Workers in Guatemala

I have accompanied my wife on a medical mission trip this week to Antigua, Guatemala. She is on a surgery team that will perform over 90 surgeries for poor people this week. I run errands for the team and wash the breakfast dishes.

Most kids go to school here but do not have much opportunity for higher education. At the hospital we serve, all the medical service staff is home trained. There aren’t many nursing, therapy or technician schools in Guatemala.

The hospital finds bright, willing and motivated workers. The doctors and nurses who visit happily teach them. The workers get to practice immediately what they are taught. They trade responsibilities around so they each know what the other does. They are a well oiled team.

The American pros say the skill level is high. Medical care provided by the locals is first rate. The capabilities increase every year.

In America, these folks wouldn’t be given a shot to do what they do here. We require formal training.

But, they say necessity is the mother of invention. In Guatemala, they find a way to fill a gap where conventional challenges don’t supply ready candidates.

Makes me consider how much more aggressive we should be at teaching and training to fill our employment needs. I think being more aggressive is in order.