MEDICO Endowed Scholarship Fund - MESF

Purpose: to provide opportunity of financial assistance for field team participation, educational purposes or other identified needs that meet the MEDICO mission statement criteria.  This is available to qualified individuals who complete and submit an application and are then selected by committee review. 

This program underscores the legacy of MEDICO's efforts through donors committed to providing opportunity for those in need.  Philanthropic opportunities are available. 

Inquiries regarding participation can be directed to information@medico.org . 

Contributions supporting this program are charitable gifts under the 501(c)3  non-profit status and are tax deductable as allowable by law. 

ADOPT-A-VILLAGE Initiative

MEDICO’s Adopt-A-Village Initiative is an expansion of an earlier program in which teams of volunteers visited the same village every year for five years. During that time MEDICO’s efforts were tracked and documented in an effort to measure progress:

• Establishment of a dental fluoride program for school children resulted in fewer cavities and fewer extractions.
  
• Eye exams and distribution of prescription and reading glasses meant that, over time, many patients were returning to the clinic just for checkups.
• Provision of vitamins, parasite meds, improved general health and wellness.
• Health hygiene instruction offered during the team's week of service showed overall improvement in patients' health status.

 Clearly, MEDICO—in partnership with pre-selected host organizations—substantially affects the well-being of the village.

 During the five years of our initial Adopt-A-Village Initiative, MEDICO also supported the village by providing school supplies and creating a nearby small health clinic with basic medicines to be distributed as needed by a local doctor or nurse. Our current AVI sites include the communities of Las Aradas and Monte Verde, Honduras.  Working in tandem with the local community, MEDICO enhanced already established programs to help create a healthier community.

Dental Fluoride programs

MEDICO established a dental fluoride treatment program in 1991 to provide a preventive dental health program for children in kindergarten through third grade. Each village visited by MEDICO teams receives 15,000 fluoride tablets to be administered by teachers each school day for one year. Many villages have received additional tablets after a year so they can order to continue the program with upcoming classes of children. MEDICO has returned to areas where such programs were started and has found them to be extremely beneficial. This program is implemented in both our Adopt-A-Village sites and standard field team locations.