Paramedics For Children

Paramedics is an international children's charity serving in Hondruas and Guatemala. We are based out of Copan Ruinas, Honduras were we run a rural medical clinic for the poor. Below are some of the projects we are currently working on.1. Since 1997, PFC has provided school supplies for 2,000 children in the 23 high mountain schools in the Copan Valley in northwestern Honduras. While public education is available, Honduras only furnishes the building and teachers. Families must pay for the children's books and supplies. In a country where the average wage is only $3.50 per day, few poor children get to attend school. Many families can only send one of their children at a time, and even that is at a great sacrifice. PFC's program has helped to substantially increase enrollment and to decrease student dropouts. The education the children are getting enables them to seek better jobs and empowers them to improve their lives.

2. PFC also provides nutritional vitamins to nutritionally deficient children in the Copan Valley. Children receive medical evaluations and can receive vitamins distributed by their school teachers. This program has resulted in some incredible improvements in the health of children and their ability to nurture and prosper.

3. PFC's Clinic of Hope in Copan Ruinas is now treating up to 400 patients per month. Through a unique program, PFC makes affordable health care available to over 25,000 poor for as little as $0.79 cents a patient. This established program has been in operation since 2005 and has not only made a significant difference in care available to the poor, but has also proven a working model that can be used elsewhere. PFC provides a clinic, equipment, and donated medicines at no charge to local doctors. PFC then pays the doctors a small hourly supplement for each hour that they work at the clinic. In return, the doctors charge each patient a very low fee, which on average is only 25% of a normal patient fee. This is beneficial arrangement for all since a large number poor can now afford a doctor's visit and come to the Clinic of Hope and the doctors are an ever ready, growing number of patients.

4. Since 1999, PFC has placed in service over 56 ambulances, trained over 340 volunteers in basic life support, and provided medical supplies in Honduras and Guatemala. The PFC ambulance program starts with the donation of high quality used ambulances that we transport to Central American and donate in kind to PFC partners in Guatemala and Honduras. Prior to PFC's first ambulance donation, emergency medical care in this area did not exist as we know it. Many of the poor children and adults who suffered from trauma simply died from lack of professional emergency medical aid. PFC established the first all volunteer rescue squad in the history of Honduras. Currently, PFC donated ambulances in Honduras and Guatemala run about 300 emergency calls per month - all for the poor who most likely would not receive care otherwise.

5. Volunteer missions of various types, such as our school supply mission, medical brigades, Internships, disaster relief missions, and our Children's Health and Identification programs. These missions go on year round .