August 18 02:48 PM
Agricultural workers in Guatemala face high rates of chronic kidney disease
MSF is caring for people suffering from Mesoamerican nephropathy.
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Guatemala 2021 © MSF/Arlette Blanco
Guatemala
Responding to the needs of migrants and people living with chronic kidney disease
News update
MSF provides medical services at a shelter set up for people affected by the eruption of the Fuego volcano
On May 5, 2023, the Fuego volcano erupted. On the same day, more than 1,000 people were evacuated from surrounding communities. In response to a call from the authorities, MSF arrived in Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa, Escuintla, to provide support to some 400 evacuees. At the emergency shelter, our team provided more than 80 medical consultations to children and older adults, as well as psychological first aid, especially to children and women of childbearing age.
After assessing the emotional situation of the people, the psychology staff and educators developed activities of instruction, active listening, emotion management and emotional discharge, especially aimed at the younger population.
In response to the needs identified, MSF delivered personal hygiene kits to 125 people and packages of disposable diapers to mothers with children under 5 years of age. As the volcano's activity has returned to normal, MSF teams have completed their support.
Our work in Guatemala
In Guatemala, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) continues to run a project providing care for people with chronic kidney disease, as well as activities to support migrants transiting the country.
What's happening in Guatemala?
Since 2021, we have been focusing on our Mesoamerican nephropathy* project to strengthen the response to non-traditional chronic kidney disease. According to data from the Ministry of Health, there are more than 10,000 patients undergoing renal function replacement treatment in Guatemala—a country with one of the highest death rates from chronic kidney failure in the Americas (14 per ever 100,000).
*Nephropathy is the deterioration of kidney function
How we're helping in Guatemala
Our teams worked in three municipalities in Escuintla department, an area almost entirely given over to large-scale plantations. The main activities of the project are early detection, treatment, mental health and social support, and palliative care. We also run health promotion and education activities to increase knowledge of the disease and promote prevention measures in communities.
How we're helping
8,210
Outpatient consultations
1,140
Individual mental health consultations
*Data from MSF International Activity Report 2022
More news and stories
Learn about MSF’s journalistic roots and our commitment to bear witness and speak out about the plight of the people we treat.
Learn about MSF’s journalistic roots and our commitment to bear witness and speak out about the plight of the people we treat.
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