My Nonprofit Reviews

I am continually humbled and inspired by the work of Wuqu' Kawoq, an organization that places high value on respect and compassion for everyone involved. They speak the language of their patients and they treat them as humans who deserve the best care.

I had the pleasure of interning with WK for close to a year, and during my experience, there was always something new that impressed me, whether it was the amazing dedication each staff member exhibited in their mission to providing the best health care to their communities, or the gratitude and sincerity each patient demonstrated for the concept of care - a concept that is so simple, yet is often more of a privilege than it is a priority.

I watched as a staff member would get up at 4 AM so that she could help her patients arrive at the public hospital in Guatemala City for complicated surgeries, waiting with them in the lobby, and accompanying them as she could, so that she could act as a mediator and translator between the patients and the doctors, whom often don't speak the same language.

I watched as another staff member would visit her patients in their homes to check up on them, to educate them, and overall to just care for them as human beings. I watched as she spent time understanding the needs of her patients, often spending hours at a time with each one. I walked with her for an hour to get from one house visit to the next, in a rural community where people have to walk two hours just to reach the nearest grocery store.

I listened as patients would tell me the difficulties they have navigating their own health care system, the ways in which they face discrimination, and their simple wishes to be able to live happy and healthy. Often, these patients are indigenous and come from rural communities, where they are not able to access health care resources easily. More than that, they are not able to access these resources in their own native language. They feel uncared for and unheard in their own country. The sad matter of fact is that the word "indigenous" could be the difference between receiving health care and not.

On behalf of the patients, I'd like to say thank you to WK. Thank you for caring for them, and thank you for making their voices heard. There aren't enough people in the world who understand how important that really is.

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