The Disque Foundation Empowers Lifesavers in Ecuador

Disque Foundation team members after a day of training in Riobamba, Ecuador

The Disque Foundation makes its first trip to South America, traveling to Riobamba, Ecuador to train hundreds of health care providers and community members in CPR, AED and First Aid.

Mackenzie Thompson, Outreach Associate at the Disque Foundation called the trip “pretty amazing,” saying, “Given that it was our first trip to South America as a team, and for me personally, I was particularly pleased at how quickly our team adapted to the new environment and could immediately get to work. Everything worked seamlessly.”

Thanks in large part to three partnering foundations; FIBSUPAM, PACH and Trek Coalition, the Disque team was able to integrate with work already going on in Ecuador. During the week-long trip volunteers trained health care providers and more than 600 members of the community in a variety of lifesaving techniques including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), Basic Life Support (BLS) and First Aid. The team also assisted in prescribing and distributing prescription eyeglasses. And, as with past trips, the team donated medical supplies to multiple local communities in Ecuador.

“This trip to Ecuador, like all the trips we undertake, was an amazing opportunity to not just empower local people and provide tools and training, but to experience another culture. The Ecuadorians were so kind and welcoming, it touched us all, and energizes us to keep making a difference in people’s lives,” is how Anna Disque, Board Member at the Disque Foundation described the trip.

Partnerships

Jane Spreckelson assisting in dental care

The Disque Foundation’s hosts in Ecuador were Fundacion Internacional Buen Samaritano Paul Martel (FIBUSPAM) and Partners for Andean Community Health (PACH). These two groups provide free and easily-accessible healthcare for the indigenous people of the Andes, offering long term medical solutions to this population. Thanks to clinics, operating rooms, and mobile medical clinics, FIBUSPAM and PACH are able to treat tens-of-thousands of patients each year. PACH provides even more life-changing medical services through its primary care, dentistry, ophthalmology and multi-specialty surgical programs.

The Disque Foundation collaborated with Trek Coalition, an organization dedicated to bringing comprehensive medical care to people who live in underserved communities who wouldn’t otherwise receive health care. Trek Coalition works by partnering with sustainable and trusted organizations that are already established in developing countries and provides them with medical professionals willing to help. A longer term goal of Trek Coalition is to serve patients in the years to come by harnessing the power of varied technology platforms for use in the communities they serve.

The Disque Foundation along with FIBUSPAM, PACH and Trek Coalition facilitated access to medical care for nearly 1,000 community members of Ecuador’s Chimborazo province. The Disque Foundation team also ‘trained the trainers’ in CPR, AED and First Aid. These health care providers are now empowered to save lives in their own rural communities.

Day by Day Breakdown

Life-saver in training performing rescue-breaths on a CPR manikin

On the first day of the Disque Foundation’s trip to Ecuador with PACH, our team strived to improve access to healthcare and community services for the people of the Andes. Our team empowered 175 people to save a life through CPR and First Aid training in San Juan de Tipin.

On our second day in Ecuador, the Disque Foundation team partnered with PACH to train people in CPR and empower these communities to save lives. The majority of the people we served are Puruhā, a pre-Incan indigenous group. Nearly 70% live in extreme poverty. So far, 155 people have been trained and empowered to save a life in San Antonio De Encalado!

On the Disque Foundation’s 3rd day in Ecuador, our team empowered 151 people to save a life in Chismaute Alto! Through our partnering organizations in Ecuador, we assisted with general medicine, dentistry, gynecology, optometry, and chiropractic care, and trained hundreds of people in CPR. The Disque Foundation also donated multivitamins and antiseptic wipes for the clinic to use throughout the year.

The Disque Foundation’s 4th day in San Luis Immaculada, Ecuador was filled with joy. We provided healthcare services for the indigenous people living in San Luis Immaculada, and the team trained approximately 150 people in CPR and empowered them all to saves lives!

Commitment to Saving Lives

Zhaira Dawn Jamaica Caseñas Disque presenting during a CPR, AED and First Aid training

“This was the Disque Foundation’s first trip to Ecuador, and we’ve been trying to get here for a long time, so it was really exciting,” said Mackenzie Thompson, Outreach Associate at the Disque Foundation and the organizer of the 2019 Ecuador trip. “The Disque Foundation’s only mission is to empower people to save lives. We ‘train the trainers’ so the health care providers we trained on this trip will continue training people in these lifesaving skills in Ecuador for years to come.”

The foundation’s trip is a project of the Save a Life Initiative, a partnership between the Disque Foundation and National Health Care Provider Solutions (NHCPS), the most trusted name in online medical certification. The Disque Foundation is filled with gratitude to all those who made this trip possible.

The Disque Foundation is committed to empowering others to save lives through health care education, CPR training and volunteering in communities that need a helping hand, we strive to live in a world where everyone is empowered to save lives. The Disque Foundation is already working toward empowering thousands more in 2020, we hope you’ll follow our journey.

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