1. Childhood Growth Stunting in Patanatic, Guatemala
Mary Katherine Kancel

2. Objectives
Purpose: KU School of Nursing (KU SON) students traveled to Patanatic, Guatemala to provide medical check-ups to the community and surrounding areas. Our efforts focused on well-child exams and home visits to the elderly and the diabetics.
Describe the community of Patanatic
Explain the prevalence and impact of childhood growth stunting in Guatemala
Spread awareness of childhood growth stunting in Guatemala

3. Patanatic, Guatemala
Rural community located 20 minutes from nearby tourist town, Panajachel
3.5 hour bus ride from Guatemala City

4. The Community
Patanatic, Guatemala is a unique community located near Lago de Atitlan
Many locals are of indigenous, Mayan descent
Speak a mixture of Spanish, K’iche, and Kaqchikel
Community is located on the side of a mountain and is divided into four sectors and none of the homes have addresses
Nearest hospital is 30 minutes away

5. Centro Educativo Y De Salud Patanatic
Private clinic that allows the community members to have access to healthcare and health education
Operates with very few resources
Sonia and Ana run the clinic, conduct medical exams, prescribe medications, monitor children’s nutrition and growth, monitor blood glucose, provide prenatal care, etc.
Started a multivitamin program called Una Cada Dia

6. Centro Educativo Y De Salud Patanatic (CESP)
CESP is a private community clinic run by two local nurses, Sonia and Ana
Soon CESP will have a doctor: Carlos David is a medical student studying to be a surgeon
Clinic allows the community to have access to healthcare and health education
Community health initiatives include ensuring homes have working water filters and a smokeless stove (plancha)

7. Growth Stunting Statistics
Guatemala has the third highest rate of growth stunting, or chronic malnutrition, worldwide (CDC, 2017)
1 in 2 children under the age of 5 are malnourished (Why Guatemala?, 2018)
Indigenous Mayan populations are disproportionately affected
49.8% of all Guatemalan children are undernourished, compared to 69.5% of indigenous Guatemalan children who are undernourished (CDC, )

8. Impact
Many children in Patanatic suffer from growth stunting; many fall below the normal growth curve
Malnourished children experience increases in chronic illnesses and disabilities, have impaired brain function, and suffer from loss of physical and economic productivity (Nagata, Gippetti, Wager, Chavez, & Wise, 2016)

9. Growth Stunting in Guatemala
In Guatemala, the most vulnerable are the Mayan communities who live in the highlands, such as Patanatic, where stunting affects almost 70% of children under five (Guatemala)
Growth stunting rates are higher among children whose mothers had no education and among those living in poverty (Guatemala)
Common for mothers to exclusively breastfeed until child is 2-3 years old
Free source of nutrients, but does not provide enough for a growing child

10. Growth Stunting Interventions
Individual: Yearly well-child exams to monitor health, nutrition, and growth
Individual: Education on the components of a healthy, balanced diet
Community: Una Cada Dia
Community: School provides a nutritious snack or meal for the children several times a week
System: This year we created a template to standardize documentation in the growth charts

11. Una Cada Dia Initiative started by Sonia and Ana
Each school day, the children receive a multivitamin
Sonia stated that since beginning the program, the teachers have noticed improvements in student’s energy levels and attention span

12. Most Profound Clinical Experience
Home visits in the community
Gained profound understanding of how the environment, landscape, and living conditions can impact an individual’s health and well-being

13. Most Profound Cultural Experience
The entire experience was incredible
Learning how to make tortillas
Eye-opening opportunity to learn about how a small business operates

14. Conclusion Guatemala is a beautiful country with a vibrant culture
The community needs more education and increased access to healthy, affordable foods
Standardization of growth chart documentation will allow for more accurate growth curves: able to track child’s progress and identify nutrition problems early

15. References
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017). Central American Refugee Health Profile. american/health- information/nutrition/index.html
Nagata, J. M., Gippetti, J., Wager, S., Chavez, A., & Wise, P. H. (2016). Prevalence and Predictors of Malnutrition among Guatemalan Children at 2 Years of Age. PLoS ONE, 11(11), e
Why Guatemala? (2018). Retrieved January 25, 2018, from
Guatemala: Nutrition Profile. (n.d.). Retrieved February 22, 2018, from Guatemala_NCP.pdf