MISSION 2021

ANTIGUA, GUATEMALA

OCTOBER 2 - OCTOBER 9, 2021

Over the last 12 years, Operation Walk Pittsburgh has traveled to 4 countries for a total of 11 missions, giving the gift of mobility to over 500 patients. This year, we were back in Antigua, Guatemala, where 25 patients - 13 women and 12 men, aged between 44 and 77 - received 33 joint replacement surgeries. This was Operation Walk Pittsburgh’s 6th trip to Obra Sociales del Santo Hermano Pedro Hospital - the Team’s home away from home. We couldn’t have been happier to return to Antigua after having to cancel the mission trip in 2020 because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 

Our Travel Team Members were recruited from across the United States, although many live and work in the Pittsburgh area. Team Members worked side by side with local clinicians at Obras to share knowledge and expertise and encourage a genuine cultural and medical exchange. This year, the Travel Team included 47 clinicians and non-clinical support staff. 34 Team Members had been on previous trips, while 13 Team Members were brand new to Operation Walk Pittsburgh! One of the highlights of each mission trip are the strong bonds of friendship that form between Operation Walk Pittsburgh volunteers and local clinicians and hospital staff. For returning Team Members this year, getting the chance to see and work with their Guatemalan colleagues again was a cherished opportunity.

The ongoing pandemic made this year’s mission trip uniquely challenging. To keep everyone involved safe, all Team Members were tested for COVID before travel and again during the mission. In addition, all patients were tested pre-operatively. During the last year, Obras Sociales Hospital implemented robust COVID safety protocols identical to those in our own hospitals. All Team Members wore personal protective equipment like N-95 masks and gowns while at work. The city of Antigua’s universal masking policies helped Team Members feel at ease while walking around town during their free time. We’re proud to say that no Team Member and no patient tested positive for COVID during the mission or in the ten days following thanks to these extra safety measures.

Operation Walk Pittsburgh is proud to provide its patients with the same high-quality care experience they would expect from any hospital in the United States. This year’s mission was no different. The tremendous financial and in-kind support Operation Walk Pittsburgh received from donors and corporate sponsors made the whole experience possible. This year, Operation Walk Pittsburgh raised over $250,000 in donations from Team Members, individual donors, and sponsors, all of which directly supported patient care. Additionally, Operation Walk Pittsburgh received nearly $500,000 in in-kind donations from corporate sponsors, including implants, surgical supplies, and equipment. Months before the Team arrived in Antigua, twelve pallets of supplies and equipment were shipped to Antigua, and an advance team arrived early to work with local staff and set up the hospital.

Taken together, a year’s worth of planning and with a tremendous amount of support from volunteers, donors, corporate sponsors, and many others, Operation Walk Pittsburgh was able to achieve its mission again in 2021, providing patients in need with the gift of mobility and life without debilitating joint pain. Operation Walk Pittsburgh patients left the hospital, many the day after surgery, with renewed hope and plans to return to their careers, hobbies, and active lifestyles with their families. Patients told us they were excited to be able to dance with their loved ones, play with their grandchildren or merely walk through their neighborhood with a sense of independence and pride. Mission 2021 was worth the hard work and effort just to hear patients express their excitement and determination, and to watch them walk out of the hospital ready to live the life they deserve and have been hoping for. 

If you’d like to learn more about Mission 2021 and some of the patients, click the button below to explore pictures and videos of the mission. Thank you, as always, for your support of Operation Walk Pittsburgh.

JOIN THE JOURNEY

As this year’s trip takes place, our in-country communications team will be documenting and sharing this year’s mission.

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