This summer PODEMOSwill be traveling to Honduras to help provide medical care to some of the most impoverished people in the Western Hemisphere. With our team clinicians, we hope to see patients for four days in squatters' villages outside of the city of El Progreso.  You will be intimately involved with the delivery of medical care and patient education.  We will work in pairs to interview and triage patients, give patients their medications and educate them about their use. In addition, we will continue improving various projects from the past trips including various health education projects and nutrition programs.  The last days of the trip we will take as personal days to relax and reflect on the progress of the trip by traveling to the bay islands for relaxation on the beach and some of the world's best snorkeling/scuba diving!

Dates:  June 13^th 2010 to June 23^rd 2010.

Itinerary:

• June 13: Arrive in San Pedro Sula around noon, visit El Progreso, hospital and pharmacies
• June 14: Orientation to communities, visit chronic care patients, prepare for clinic
• June 15: Clinic in Siete
• June 16: Clinic in Siete
• June 17: Clinic in Monte
• June 18: Clinic in Monte
• June 19:  Travel to Bay Islands
• June 20-21:  Bay Islands
• June 22:  Travel back to El Progreso
• June 23: Departure for US.

Flights: Flights will be purchased to San Pedro Sula (SAP). You will be responsible for purchasing your own flight.

Accommodations: We will be staying in Hotel Cascada which also provides meals and purified water.

Safety: During our past trips we have not experienced any theft or assaults.  This is not to say that there have never been problems in the locations we will be working, but our organization takes safety issues seriously.  When we are in the community we try to have a local Honduran with us at all times. We will not be out at night unless we have secure transportation. In the case of emergency, there are Western style emergency health services available which we feel comfortable using.  All students will be required to purchase travel insurance in case an emergency arises, but we will discuss this more in the future.

Estimated Budget: Flights will vary depending on your departure location.  A payment of $400 will be made in advance to cover transportation, lodging, and all meals in El Progreso.  Meals, souvenirs, and activities on Utila such as SCUBA are not included.

Pre-Trip Preparation: In preparation for the trip, we will have several meetings to go over information regarding the trip:

• Wednesday February 10^th, 7:30 pm: Meet the new trip members, go over trip guide, discuss flights, insurance, accommodations etc.
• Mid April Discuss individual roles/assignments for trip members while in Honduras
• Mid/End of May: Packing party and final preparation for trip.

Funding: We expect students participating in the trip to be actively involved in fundraising and other preparations for the trip.  This includes helping gather supplies including soliciting donations for vitamins and other supplies, printing medical booklets and other projects that come up as necessary.  In order to keep our project sustainable, we need to raise $1500 for the summer trip.  Additional money raised will go towards covering transportation fees.  In order to receive funding, you will need to show active participation in trip preparations.

Interested? Download, complete, and return the attached application to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by  February 1, 2010 at NOON.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at the above email address. There will be an informational meeting in January to explain trip details and present what was accomplished on the winter 2009-10 trip.