Dorothy's own Words: "The true heroes of the health care system in Nicaragua are not the white-coated specialists, though I value their skills and knowledge and am grateful for them. The true heroes are the traditional midwives, health brigadistas, curanderos, raiceros and other health workers in communities who respond to the pain, fevers, diarrheas, and accidents of their neighbors. These health workers live far from health facilities, in remote areas with poor roads and, often, impassable rivers. Some are women and men who learned skills from mothers, grand-mothers and other elders. Others were youth who learned to read and write in the Literacy Campaign of the just-birthed revolution in 1979 and 1980 and emerged as leaders of their communities.

These workers are peasants who, along with their neighbors, struggle to have a piece of land to grow beans and corn for their families. If the harvest is good there is extra to sell to buy clothes, shoes (ropa usada americana), salt, soap, oil, and kerosene.

These workers are very skilled in the art of living. With a machete as their only tool they build homes of a packed-earth floor, bamboo or rough-wood walls water-proofed with mud and stones and a roof of leaf. Elders teach them the use of plants, clay and water that relieve pain, bleeding, swelling, fever and cure snake-bite as well as relieve anxiety, insomnia and sadness.

During the Somoza dictatorship, traditional health workers were tolerated, there being few options for health care for the majority of Nicaraguans who were rural. In 1979 when the Sandinista Revolution came to power traditional culture including healers and midwives began to be honored.

This recognition of the value of traditional healers was withdrawn when from 1990 to 1997 right-wing governments were in power. Not only were traditional healers not recognized, but health services for the majority poor were reduced to near disappearance. Since the Sandinista Government returned in 1997, the Ministry of Health has attempted to reverse the abandonment of traditional health workers. Today, the Ministry of Health recognizes and validates healers who are called “traditional” or “alternative”.