Our Latest Guatemala Team Returns: High-Acuity Care and a New Chapter of Collaboration

EP’s newest team has returned from Guatemala. With a small team of four providers, this mission centered on treating complex patients and advancing critical programs that support long-term health infrastructure.

The visit began at Hospital General San Juan de Dios in Guatemala City, one of the country’s major public hospitals and home to the national emergency medicine residency. Our team conducted a neonatal needs assessment to advance a new initiative, led by ER Pharmacist and EP Board Member Raghad Saadi, PharmD, to supply essential medications in dire shortage regionally. These WHO-listed essential treatments are vital for premature infants facing apnea of prematurity and refractory hypotension; conditions that contribute significantly to Guatemala’s elevated infant mortality rates. Improving access to these medications has the potential to save lives immediately.

We also formalized a growing collaboration with the emergency medicine residency at San Juan de Dios. Working alongside Dra. Eugenia Álvarez, a Pediatric Emergency Medicine physician who oversees an ED seeing more than 70,000 pediatric visits annually, EP is helping to establish rotation opportunities for students and residents, creating a powerful training partnership rooted in real-world impact.

From Guatemala City, the team traveled to Valencia, where EP helped establish a community clinic last year. Providers evaluated higher-acuity patients, conducted house calls for those unable to travel, and completed a pharmacy quality improvement review to strengthen medication access and continuity of care. Even with a smaller mission footprint, each encounter carried meaningful, immediate impact.

Before departing, the team visited our newest partner, Vine International, at their warehouse and distribution center. With more than 30 years of experience supplying underserved regions, Vine will now manage EP’s shipping and logistics pipeline—significantly expanding our ability to deliver medications, equipment, and supplies throughout Guatemala.

This mission marks an important step in EP’s evolving work in the region: deeper partnerships, higher-level clinical care, strengthened neonatal support, and a growing role alongside Guatemala’s emergency medicine community. With each mission, we move closer to building sustainable, accessible emergency care for all.