Paramedics Foundation (Honduras)

Fundación Paramédicos (Paramedics Foundation) is a Honduran nonprofit organization founded on June 12, 2001, in Santa Rosa de Copán, in the western department of Copán. It is described as the first organization of its kind in the Republic of Honduras. The foundation is financed by its own activities and by donations from citizens and other associations, and it operates under the motto "Ayudando a Salvar una Vida" (Helping to Save a Life). The organization traces its origins to the 1990s, when a group of U.S. paramedics established a Central American branch of Paramedics for Children (PFC) in Copán Ruinas, western Honduras, to provide medical attention, medicines, educational materials, and disaster assistance to low-income people in western Honduras and Guatemala. Led by Rodger Harrison, the paramedics set up a small hospital center and provided ambulance mobilization for medical emergencies and the transfer of serious patients to national and international hospitals. Their work proved especially effective during Hurricanes Mitch in October and November 1998, which struck Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and northern Nicaragua. In response, people active in western Honduras took emergency medical care courses to prepare personnel for possible disasters. The first paramedic course in Santa Rosa de Copán produced participants including Juan Ramón Trejo, Miriam Rosales Valladares, and Rolando Pineda. On June 12, 2001, operating under the name of their trainers, Paramedics For Children, the small group of Emergency Medical Technicians already installed in Santa Rosa de Copán began working under a legal personality established in articles 56 to 59 of the Honduran Constitution, directed by a board of directors presided over by engineer Reynerio Duarte. A base of operations was requested and located in the Region of Health No. 5, in the Doctor Vicente Fernández Mejía building, from which the technicians provided care using their first Chevrolet ambulance. In the following decade, a second technicians' course was held, the hierarchy was reorganized, and a board of directors made up of related civilians was formed, with a subordinate staff of paramedics commanded by social promoter Juan Ramón Trejo. The base received its second ambulance, a Ford. From 2003, after another delivery of new technicians, the staff decided to establish itself as a foundation, separating from the U.S. organization from which it had obtained economic support, ambulances, equipment, and uniforms. It was renamed Fundación Paramédicos de Santa Rosa de Copán, designed its own logo and uniform, and received a plot of land donated by the Municipality of Santa Rosa de Copán, where it decided to settle permanently to attend to emergencies in the western corridor of Honduras and transfers to Guatemala and El Salvador. A new and modern Ford ambulance was received. The foundation's mission is to help people who request it in emergency situations, regardless of their economic condition, with timely, professional, and high-quality treatment. Its vision is to reduce death rates caused by accidents and emergencies, for which it has a team of paramedics and specialized transport to respond promptly when the population of western Honduras demands it. From 2004, the foundation began calls to recruit volunteers, with courses held at the Doctor Vicente Fernández Mejía Health Center covering basic first aid, basic life support, intramuscular vaccines, and more. As emergency medicine advanced, volunteer paramedics received intermediate and advanced courses, including training at the Hospital de Occidente by a group of U.S. doctors under American Heart Association license standards. Several paramedics, after finishing their volunteer stage, entered medical schools at national universities to continue their academic studies.

The Fundación Paramédicos traces its roots to the 1990s, when a group of U.S. paramedics decided to found a Central American branch of Paramedics for Children (PFC) with the sole purpose of collaborating with low-income people by providing medical attention, medicines, educational materials, and assistance in natural disasters. The PFC entrepreneurs established themselves in the municipality of Copán Ruinas in western Honduras, from where they served needy people in both western Honduras and Guatemala. The paramedics, led by Rodger Harrison, set up a small hospital center and provided ambulance mobilization to attend to medical emergencies and transfer serious patients to national and international hospitals. The charitable activity of this volunteer group proved effective when Hurricane Mitch struck in October and November 1998, battering Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and northern Nicaragua. As a result, active people in western Honduras decided to take emergency medical care courses to prepare personnel for possible disasters. In the city of Santa Rosa de Copán, the first paramedic course was held with several participants, among whom Juan Ramón Trejo, Miriam Rosales Valladares, and Rolando Pineda stood out. On June 12, 2001, operating under the name of their trainers, Paramedics For Children, the small group of Emergency Medical Technicians already installed in Santa Rosa de Copán began working under a legal personality established in articles 56 to 59 of the Honduran Constitution, directed by a board of directors presided over by engineer Reynerio Duarte. A base of operations was requested and located in the Region of Health No. 5, headquartered in the Doctor Vicente Fernández Mejía building, from which the technicians provided care using their first Chevrolet ambulance. In the following decade, a second technicians' course was held, the hierarchy was reorganized, and a board of directors made up of related civilians was formed, with a subordinate staff of paramedics commanded by social promoter Juan Ramón Trejo. The base received its second ambulance, a Ford. From 2003, after another delivery of new technicians, the staff decided to establish itself as a foundation, separating from the U.S. organization from which it obtained economic support, ambulances, equipment, and uniforms. It was renamed Fundación Paramédicos de Santa Rosa de Copán, under the motto "Ayudando a Salvar una Vida," designed its own logo and uniform, and received a plot of land donated by the Municipality of Santa Rosa de Copán, where it decided to settle permanently to attend to emergencies in the western corridor of Honduras and transfers to Guatemala and El Salvador. A new and modern Ford ambulance was received. From 2004, the Fundación Paramédicos began calls to recruit volunteers, with courses held at the Doctor Vicente Fernández Mejía Health Center, where aspirants received basic first aid, basic life support, intramuscular vaccines, and more. As emergency medicine advanced, volunteer paramedics from Santa Rosa received intermediate and advanced courses, such as training at the Hospital de Occidente by a group of U.S. doctors under American Heart Association license standards. Several paramedics, after finishing their volunteer stage, entered medical schools at national universities to continue their academic studies. In 2005, according to volunteer demand in Honduras, the foundation employed a new system for receiving volunteers: juniors, who are adolescent student youths aged 17 to 18 with written parental permission, who did not attend medical emergencies but collaborated in collecting materials, presentations, meetings, and parades. The name "Fundación Paramédicos" became officially established in 2012 as a nonprofit organization that subsists thanks to its own activities and collaborations from associations and ordinary people.

• 2012

  The name "Fundación Paramédicos" becomes officially established as a nonprofit organization.

• 2005

  A new system for receiving junior volunteers aged 17 to 18 with written parental permission is introduced.

• 2004

  The foundation begins calls to recruit volunteers and holds training courses at the Doctor Vicente Fernández Mejía Health Center.

• 2003

  The staff establishes itself as Fundación Paramédicos de Santa Rosa de Copán, separates from Paramedics for Children, designs its own logo and uniform, and receives land donated by the Municipality of Santa Rosa de Copán.

• 2001

  On June 12, the group of Emergency Medical Technicians in Santa Rosa de Copán begins operating under a legal personality with a board of directors presided over by Reynerio Duarte.

• 1998

  Hurricane Mitch strikes Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, and northern Nicaragua, prompting local volunteers in western Honduras to take emergency medical care courses.

Nonprofit emergency medical service provider and training organization for underserved communities in western Honduras.

• Emergency ambulance service

  Ambulance mobilization for medical emergencies and transfer of serious patients to national and international hospitals.

• Paramedic training courses

  Courses covering basic first aid, basic life support, intramuscular vaccines, and intermediate/advanced emergency medical training under American Heart Association standards.

• Junior volunteer program

  Program for adolescent students aged 17 to 18 with parental permission to collaborate in non-emergency activities.

1. 1Paramedics Foundation (Honduras) - Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Fundación Paramédicos (Honduras) - Wikipedia (Spanish)es.wikipedia.org