Founded and organized by pediatric residents, Children’s Health International Medicine Project of Seattle (CHIMPS) collaborates with ENLACE’s church partners in the Abelines region to provide medical care and public health interventions. Over the past seven years members of the CHIMPS teams have helped administer care in the Abelines region while also providing training and encouragement to the multiple Health Committees in the area. In addition, the teams have helped gather vital medical information including a multi-year iron deficiency study.
This year’s trip, in mid-April, was focused on dental hygiene. The CHIMPS team conducted dental exams, applied fluoride varnish and distributed dental supplies for more than 400 children. They also gathered important information about the state of dental hygiene in the area while training patients and Health Committee members on prevention of future dental problems.
Kim administering fluoride treatment in AbelinesENLACE volunteer Kim Frederick reports that the trip was “a true eye-opener to the incredible need for dental health in rural poverty-stricken areas. By the end of the first day, the need for dental care and caries prevention was painfully apparent, as 96% of the children we saw had at least some form of moderate tooth decay, with the average number of caries being greater than four per child. Also, after the first day, 34% of the children were noted as having severe caries in which the tooth or teeth were fully eroded or the roots exposed.”
The Abelines region has seen remarkable change in the health of its community members since local churches actively began to serve with ENLACE’s accompaniment. Teams like CHIMPS not only provide technical and practical assistance but are an encouragement to the church and community members who are working daily towards community transformation.
Click here to read Kim’s blog entry about her experience in Abelines…