Donate
We raise funds to bring our hospitals and residency programs to full operation and financial self-sufficiency and to cover indigent care until surpluses are high enough to cover our poorest patients.
Join the Hesburgh Legacy Society
Join a community of AHD donors and board members in the “Hesburgh Legacy Society” by including Andean Health in your will and estate.
For questions about planned giving, please contact laura.brown@andeanhealth.org. Thank you.
Stock Transfers & RMDs
Stock Donations. If you donate stock that has increased in value since you bought it more than a year ago, you can take a charitable deduction for the stock’s fair market value on the day you donate. You’ll also avoid capital-gains taxes on the increase in value over time.
Required minimum distribution (RMD). If you are over the age of 73, the government requires you to take annual distributions from your retirement account. Up to $105,000 of your annual RMD from IRAs may be distributed directly to charity, enabling you to avoid paying income taxes on that amount.
Contribute to our Endowment
As part of a long-term strategy for organizational sustainability, the AHD Advisory Board established an endowment to fund lasting intergenerational impact for rural Ecuador.
Historically, our small organization has sustained operations year to year and donation to donation. Please continue to prioritize giving to our annual operations, but if you can make an additional gift, contact laura.brown@andeanhealth.org to learn how to support our endowment efforts.
And as you prepare your own legacy, we ask you to consider including a gift to Andean Health & Development in your estate plans. Your generosity will support our vital mission of providing quality, sustainable health care for Ecuador’s underserved for generations to come.
Read the Book
Pick up a copy of Long Road from Quito, the inspiring story of Dr. Gaus and AHD, through University of Notre Dame Press or on Amazon.
Conduct Research with Us
Our research agenda is ambitious and broad, focusing on public health issues that face our communities. We emphasize quantitative as well as qualitative research. Our partners include the University of Notre Dame’s Eck Institute, the University of Wisconsin’s Global Health Institute, Bellarmine University’s Department of Anthropology, and the Catholic University of Ecuador.
Our areas of research have focused on:
• Vector biology (mosquitos and arboviral infections)
• Tropical disease
• Antimicrobial resistance patterns
• Various aspects of COVID-19
• Mental health
• Medical anthropology
• Medical education
Our hospital in Santo Domingo has a full microbiology laboratory with PCR capability and -80 freezer. Our communities served by our healthcare systems are subtropical and tropical on the western slopes of the Andes. One community has 70,000 members and the other more than 400,000.
We also write medical manuals and attempt to introduce contextualized best practices in a challenging clinical environment. For example, we have treatment protocols established that our medical ICU utilizes. Our electronic medical record facilitates the use of protocols and allows for ongoing monitoring in real time.
Do you have a research idea? Let us know. Email info@andeanhealth.org. We would be happy to discuss!
Elective for Medical Students
Because our model empowers local staff, we do not have a way to utilize US volunteers at our hospitals. Unfortunately, we do not have opportunities for high school or undergraduate students at this time.
Spanish-speaking fourth year medical students and residents may participate in AHD’s month-long elective (cost is $1,500, plus room and board) in Ecuador. Please contact laura.brown@andeanhealth.org for more info. Update Sep. 2023: The State Department has issued a travel advisory for Santo Domingo. We currently are not hosting visitors from the U.S.
Spread the Word
You can help build awareness for Andean Health’s work by hosting a fundraising event in your home or a speaking engagement for Dr. Gaus. Consider reading the book about AHD, Long Road from Quito. You can also follow us and share our posts on Facebook and Twitter. Please encourage your friends and family to participate in AHD’s events. Please contact laura.brown@andeanhealth.org to learn more.
