This great blog post comes to us from Dr. Juan José Amador, Director of Health Systems and Technology in Nicaragua at PATH

During my childhood in Nicaragua, I used to see a shocking sight: Groups of people carrying child-size coffins through the streets toward the cemetery. Families-usually the poorest in my community-mourning the deaths of their youngest members. Almost always, diarrheal disease was the cause.

Back then, these funeral processions were common. Diarrhea was a lethal epidemic, most often striking babies before they reached their first birthdays. We had few resources and little information to stop it.

When I became a doctor, we didn’t think that our country could overcome the disease. Three years ago, however, things began to change.

With PATH’s partnership, Nicaragua began vaccinating newborn babies against rotavirus, the most common cause of severe diarrheal disease, and helping families understand how better hygiene reduces risk. PATH partnered with health workers to introduce new saline solutions and other remedies for keeping young bodies hydrated and healthy.

And it’s working. We’ve cut the number of children who die from diarrhea in half. Hospital diarrhea wards are now empty, thanks to lifesaving rotavirus vaccine and other simple interventions:

Read Wilson’s story here, and check out the slide show here.

My hope for Nicaragua is a generation of healthy children who can learn better, smile bigger, and grow up strong-without the threat of death from diarrhea. Many years ago, we didn’t believe this was possible. But in a few short years, we have changed the history of my country.