Josh Lee, Dixie State University
Health
According to the World Health Organization (2012), health care systems in Central America rank in the top 50% of the 190 ranked countries in the world, yet thousands of people are in need of simple medical attention and supplies every day in these areas. Countries such as Honduras lack virtually all access to health services, with 83% of the country’s population without health insurance, and 30% with no health care access at all (Pearson et al., 2012). To address this issue, a 2013 Dixie State University study conducted by the author, an Integrated Studies major with disciplinary emphases in Spanish and Biology, interviewed fifty adult Central American immigrants at a Southern Utah health care facility with the aim to providing student groups embarking on health service projects a researched list of vitally needed medical supplies. Participants in the study were asked to provide information regarding their health care experiences in their countries of origin and draw upon their comparative experiences with health care in the United States in order to determine areas of need. The forty individuals in this study represented a total of seven Central American countries and the interviews were conducted in Spanish and translated into English. The interviews were conducted over an 8-week period of time and results suggested that diabetes, cold, flu, antibiotics, and anti diarrhea medicines and supplies are a few of the needed health care items in these neighboring countries. Although statistical significance was not a feature of this study due to the number of participants, significant consistencies in responses by former residents of a variety of Central American countries suggested that some medical needs are regionally shared and that larger scale follow-up studies may reliably identify these as key resources for student medical delegations traveling to Central America.