About Hillside
About Hillside
Our Story
Since 2000, Hillside Health Care has operated a year-round clinic in the Toledo District of southern Belize, offering free services and medications to patients. Originally called "Jericho Road Clinic," the name changed to Hillside Health Care International in 2005, then to Hillside Health Care in 2024. Founded to address the district's unmet medical needs, the clinic collaborates with community leaders, government ministries, local organizations, and NGOs. Volunteer doctors, nurses, and medical students see patients in the clinic and run mobile clinics in remote villages throughout the week.
Services we provide:
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First Palliative Care and Hospice Program in the Toledo district in order to better care for our patients at the end of their life.
Hillside provides the only home health care service in the Punta Gorda, and villages throughout Toledo district for home-bound patients who need medical, nursing, rehabilitation, and/or hospice services.
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Hillside offers a variety of Public Health education programs to children and adults throughout the Toledo District of southern Belize.
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Using the Community-Based Rehabilitation model, Hillside’s rehab services focus on therapeutic intervention and outreach in communities and schools.
Community outreach to decrease stigma surrounding the disabled population
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Treatment for noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension
Childhood diseases
Women’s health
Preventative health care services
Minor procedures
Medications
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Mobile clinics sent to rural villages in Toledo district complete with portable medical supplies and a portable pharmacy.
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Community matters a lot to us. We are involved in a slew of community outreach activities including:
Monthly Health Fairs in the town park
Health education in area schools
Fluoride treatments and dental health education
Disability Awareness Programs in all Toledo district primary schools
Participation in Ministry of Health sponsored health fairs, such as World Mental Health Day, World TB Day, and Caribbean Wellness Day
Employee health screenings at area businesses
Participation in Career Fairs at local secondary schools
Teacher education sessions
Participation in the training of Community Health Workers
…and so much more
Toledo District Belize
The Toledo District is a richly diverse region that is home to many demographic groups, including Mayan, Garifuna, Mestizo, East Indian, and other cultural groups. Limited resources, differing cultural practices and language barriers pose unique challenges to effective and culturally competent collaboration and patient care.
Hillside provides approximately 10,000 clinical and outreach services to the people of Southern Belize each year.
Abby’s House
In October 2005, Abigail Drake Brinkman, a fourth-year medical student from Indiana University School of Medicine, died in a tragic diving accident on a weekend excursion while doing a tropical medicine rotation at the Hillside Clinic. Because of the Brinkman family’s fantastic efforts, the Rotary Club of Columbus, IN, and many other people, Abby’s House was built in 2008.
Abby’s House provides housing for additional students and allowed the expansion of medical teams. In addition, Hillside increased its clinical services in 2010 to daily clinics in Eldridgeville and daily mobile clinics in a remote village.