In 2008, the work of the previous three years was brought to fruition with the implementation of a Telehealth Program between Belize and Rochester. We received a grant from the Rochester local Dorothea Haus Ross Foundation, which funded the telemedicine equipment that was placed in Southern Regional Hospital, Dangriga, Belize. Specialists from Rochester General Hospital provide In-Kind consults to the Belizean physicians and patients. Normally, most patients in Belize are forced to travel to neighboring countries for treatment or go without. Telehealth provides the conduit between the two locations. Besides giving consults, this technology allows us to screen patients before we arrive and conduct post-operative care after we leave.
The Telehealth Program can also be used to mentor both physicians and nurses in educational programs and grand rounds that are available at Rochester General Hospital. It has always been InterVol’s philosophy to educate the physicians and nurses where we volunteer, so that they can continue the care we started.
