Areas of attention
The Maniapure Project Foundation is a non-governmental organization with more than two decades of experience improving the quality of life in rural communities in the Venezuelan Amazon. Its work focuses on three main areas: health, nutrition, and protection, complemented by the innovative use of information and communication technologies to bring essential services to hard-to-reach populations.
Health area
FPM develops a comprehensive Primary Health Care (PHC) model adapted to rural conditions. This model is supported by the ongoing training of local human resources (rural doctors, nurses, community workers, and leaders) with the goal of ensuring timely, high-quality, and culturally sensitive care. Highlighted initiatives include:
Medical consultations and telemedicine: The Type 2 Popular Clinic at the La Milagrosa Center is the cornerstone of care, providing thousands of consultations, both in person and through the Virtual Triage Center (VTC). This telemedicine option has helped bridge the gap and guarantee access to specialists, even when they are many hours away.
Disease control and monitoring: Special attention is paid to the management of communicable and infectious diseases, as well as the monitoring of chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, and other conditions associated with the region's lifestyle and socioeconomic conditions.
Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH): The SRH program includes prenatal care, family planning, birth care, and management of sexual violence situations, allowing women, children, and adolescents to receive comprehensive support based on respect for their rights and worldview.
Emergencies and Transfers: FPM has protocols for medical emergency care and transfers, ensuring that, in critical situations, the response is rapid and coordinated, relying on the network of referral services and the use of teleconsultations for specialized support.
Nutrition Area
It aims to combat acute and chronic malnutrition affecting children, pregnant and nursing women, and the general population. This program is characterized by:
Nutritional screening and assessment: Screening activities are carried out in communities, measuring anthropometric indicators and detecting cases of malnutrition, which allows for early and timely intervention.
Direct interventions: Micronutrients and specific nutritional treatments are provided, as well as preventive deworming for children, to strengthen their overall health.
Training and awareness: The program includes training community nutrition promoters, who are key to disseminating good nutrition, hygiene, and rational resource use practices, adapting messages to the cultural and geographic circumstances of each community.
Comprehensive approach: In addition, complementary actions are developed in the area of WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene), which are essential to prevent diseases related to lack of access to clean water and inadequate hygiene conditions, and are harmoniously integrated with nutritional interventions.
Protection area
It is a cross-cutting dimension in all FPM interventions, aimed at guaranteeing human rights and promoting the dignity of all population groups, especially in vulnerable contexts. Actions in this area are characterized by:
Focus on rights and gender: We work to prevent and address situations of gender-based violence, as well as to promote safe spaces for women, children, and adolescents. Interventions are carried out in coordination with protection networks, including the Protection Cluster, to ensure a comprehensive and coordinated response to humanitarian emergencies.
Community engagement and awareness-raising: Community leaders and local stakeholders are trained to identify and respond to risks of violence, exploitation, and human trafficking. These activities include workshops, focus groups, and psychoeducation sessions, which empower the community and strengthen social resilience.
Psychosocial support and mental health: Recognizing the impact of vulnerability and stress on mental health, FPM implements psychosocial support and psychological first aid programs, training local staff and establishing support networks that facilitate early risk detection and referral to specialized services.
Protection area
It is a cross-cutting dimension in all FPM interventions, aimed at guaranteeing human rights and promoting the dignity of all population groups, especially in vulnerable contexts. Actions in this area are characterized by:
Focus on rights and gender: We work to prevent and address situations of gender-based violence, as well as to promote safe spaces for women, children, and adolescents. Interventions are carried out in coordination with protection networks, including the Protection Cluster, to ensure a comprehensive and coordinated response to humanitarian emergencies.
Community engagement and awareness-raising: Community leaders and local stakeholders are trained to identify and respond to risks of violence, exploitation, and human trafficking. These activities include workshops, focus groups, and psychoeducation sessions, which empower the community and strengthen social resilience.
Psychosocial support and mental health: Recognizing the impact of vulnerability and stress on mental health, FPM implements psychosocial support and psychological first aid programs, training local staff and establishing support networks that facilitate early risk detection and referral to specialized services.
These areas of intervention are integrated to respond to the specific needs of communities, adapting to their cultural and geographic diversity. FPM's methodology is based on collaborative work, technological innovation, such as telemedicine, and ongoing training, which allows challenges to be transformed into opportunities to improve the quality of life and promote sustainable development in the region.
This comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach positions the Maniapure Project Foundation as a benchmark in caring for vulnerable populations, offering health, nutrition, and protection services that respond to the challenges inherent in communities with high levels of vulnerability and access difficulties.
Telemedicine
The La Milagrosa Center is one of the pioneering telemedicine centers in Venezuela, equipped with hardware infrastructure and web-based software for managing teleconsultations or second opinion consultations.
Telemedicine allows for the efficient use of specialized medical resources concentrated in large cities. By placing these specialized physicians within the reach of primary care physicians located in rural outpatient clinics, their diagnostic and treatment capacity is increased, substantially reducing the number of patient transfers to medical centers far from their communities. This is because with telemedicine, 90% of cases can be resolved in the same rural area where the patients reside. Only those requiring special studies or surgical interventions are transferred to large health centers in capital cities.
Venezuelan law requires medical students to complete an internship known as "ruralito," which consists of working for 10 weeks in a rural outpatient clinic. After graduating as doctors, they must comply with Article 8 of the Law on the Practice of Medicine, which requires a full year of medical practice in a rural setting. This allows newly graduated physicians to offer their services and have a direct impact on hard-to-reach communities. In the case of the doctors working at the La Milagrosa center, through telemedicine, they gain access to the opinions of specialists in large cities, allowing them to be more precise in their diagnoses and therapeutic recommendations.
Consultation
The rural medical team uses satellite internet and a telemedicine consultation system developed by the foundation that adapts to the specific needs of the communities we serve. With this platform, rural doctors have access to specialists in large cities who can diagnose cases that a doctor just graduating from medical school would struggle to identify.
Specialist diagnosis
Once the case is entered into the system by the rural physician, the specialist has access to the case information. Once all the data related to the case has been reviewed, the specialist sends his diagnosis and recommendations to the rural medical team. The rural medical team will have the final say on whether the patient is treated on-site or transferred to a hospital.
95% of cases are resolved without transfers
The rural team provides consultations at the outpatient clinic and frequently travels to nearby communities, where they treat patients who have difficulty getting to the clinic. When a patient presents with symptoms unknown to the rural medical team, a teleconsultation is arranged and a specialist diagnoses are obtained. Ninety-five percent of these cases can be resolved on-site without spending thousands of dollars on airplanes, helicopters, or other means of transportation that represent very high costs or unnecessary risks.
5% of cases require transfer to a hospital
There are specific cases in which, due to outpatient facilities, the complexity of the case, or the patient's specific situation, the patient must be referred to a hospital. Without telemedicine, the referral rate would be much higher than 5%, generating costs for the state, communities, and families.
Health operations
Every year, and on special occasions up to twice a year, the Maniapure Project Foundation organizes a health operation that has become one of the most emblematic initiatives of our work. This effort brings together a multidisciplinary team of approximately 40 specialists and 40 volunteers, who travel to the "La Milagrosa" rural outpatient clinic with a single purpose: to provide comprehensive medical care to patients whose needs exceed the capacity of the rural medical services available in the area.
These operations are possible thanks to carefully planned logistics, which include the use of at least 20 aircraft to transport cargo, medical equipment, medications, specialists, and volunteers to this remote location. For several days, "La Milagrosa" is transformed into a mass care center, providing consultations in areas such as pediatrics, gynecology, cardiology, dentistry, ophthalmology, and many other specialties. In addition, medical procedures are performed that make a significant difference in the quality of life of the patients treated.
The impact of these operations is measured not only in numbers or statistics, but also in the stories of hope and gratitude that emerge among those who receive medical care and those who provide it. Every flight that lands in Maniapure carries with it the commitment to save lives and improve entire communities.
At the Maniapure Project Foundation, we firmly believe that access to healthcare is a fundamental right. Therefore, we continue working to expand our support network and ensure that each operation is a transformative experience for both the beneficiaries and everyone involved in this mission.
Community camp
In partnership with Iguanas Camp, the Maniapure Project Foundation organizes the annual Multidisciplinary Community Camp in La Milagrosa, a project that seeks to empower young community leaders and strengthen cultural ties in the region. This camp focuses on outdoor education and recreational activities designed to develop leadership skills, teamwork, and cultural awareness among participants.
The camp's primary objective is to empower young people to become agents of positive change in their communities. Through workshops and hands-on activities, the camp fosters the development of essential skills such as effective communication, conflict resolution, and strategic planning. Additionally, it promotes activities that celebrate and preserve the rich cultural diversity of the Indigenous and Creole communities living in the region.
The Community Camp has proven to be a successful initiative, benefiting dozens of children and young people, as well as numerous families in the Maniapure region. By providing leadership skills and strengthening cultural ties, it contributes to the empowerment of local communities and promotes a more prosperous and sustainable future for the region.
The partnership with Iguanas Camp has been fundamental to the success of this project. Together, we work to ensure that the camp is an enriching and transformative experience for all participants. We invite the community to join us in this effort by supporting and participating in camp activities to further strengthen the positive impact on the region.
CUMIS
In 2014, the Maniapure Project Foundation established a strategic alliance with the Scientific Society of Medical Students of the Central University of Venezuela (SOCIEM UCV), which manages the Multidisciplinary University Research and Service Camp (CUMIS). This collaboration has been instrumental in improving medical care in the Indigenous and Creole communities we serve in the Maniapure region.
The CUMIS program allows medical and dental students to actively participate in health events, providing comprehensive medical support to communities most in need. At the same time, it offers students a unique experiential training experience, where they can apply their knowledge in a real-life and challenging environment. This partnership not only strengthens our foundation's response capacity but also contributes to the professional development of future physicians and dentists.
During the workshops organized by CUMIS, services are offered in various medical specialties, including gynecology, obstetrics, internal medicine, pediatrics, dermatology, pulmonology, infectious disease, and dentistry. In addition, research is conducted to better understand the health needs of these communities and develop public policies that improve their quality of life.
The collaboration between the Maniapure Project Foundation and CUMIS has marked a milestone in healthcare in the region. Not only has access to quality healthcare services been improved, but a space has also been created for research and development of future healthcare professionals. This partnership reflects our commitment to the health and well-being of Venezuela's most remote and vulnerable communities.
