Guatemala

Similar in size to neighbouring Central American countries, Guatemala continues to increase its overall health expenditure and in 2014 it was 6.2% of the GDP.¹ It is estimated that basic health and nutrition services meet only 54% of the need of the rural population.

The momentum built from the "Safer Surgical Instruments" workshop held in February 2019 in El Salvador led to participants teaching their colleagues in the neighboring countries of Nicaragua, El Salvador and Honduras. In March 2019, the hospital Nacional del Progreso Y Escuelade Enfermería in Guatemala held a “Safer Surgical Instruments” training for 20 sterilization room technicians and 20 operating room nurses.

¹ WHO by country: Guatemala (2014). Retrieved from:https://www.who.int/countries/gtm/en/