The Village of Lisangnipura
Lisangnipura is a village 20 miles due south of Puerto Lempira (PLP). The villages of Tipimona and Auka are close by and are places IHS has gone to before (see map below).
Travel to this village is usually on winding dirt roads. Occasionally, travel can be done by small planes but that depends on the condition of the grass runway (cow pasture).
Lisangnipura is a recently built village after Hurricane Mitch displaced villagers from Tipimona to higher ground near the Lisangni Tingni (River). Like Tipimona and other nearby villages, most houses and buildings are wooden with tin or thatch roofs. Their small clinic building is not very old and is a cement block structure with a metal roof. It has a few small rooms but works well for them.
Since none of the villages around there have any commercial electricity, the IHS team brings a generator and other equipment for power for the team’s work and to help make meals. Plus, they bring gear to purify water for the medical team’s work and for drinking. They also will bring radio and satellite internet equipment to stay in touch with the PLP Admin people and with family members back home.
When the team arrives, many people are already waiting to see the doctor or dentist. For many, it is the first time they have seen professional medical care.
Besides all the medical care in the clinic, the team also has to do basic chores such as preparing all their meals. Even without refrigeration, the team can bring many good things to eat. A simple LP gas burner can do wonders to prepare pancakes, spaghetti, and other tasty meals.
IHS is planning for the Lisangnipura team comm to set up Starlink satellite high speed internet services. It has a robust network that provides access for smartphone coverage plus MagicJack, WhatsApp and other internet calling. It also has a router that provides services for laptop & tablet usage such as emailing, Google searching, Zoom meetings, and most any web site services. All this with the capacity to handle most everything simultaneously and without interuptions. It is better than most US homes’ internet.
Another big reason why communications go so smoothly in this remote village is the IHS team will often bring added equipment for communications (radios, etc) to talk with each other. With this back-up gear, comm can provide stand alone services to do e-mailing for team communications and with their families back home plus voice comm via the 2meter net with the Puerto Lempira logistics team. This radio gear can also interface emailing capability with the Starlink system.
With all the team pitching in to do their part, many patients are seen who get quality care. We see many smiles with friendships made along the way.
