Mexico continues to face significant health inequities, as formal access to health services does not necessarily translate into financial protection or equitable access to care. In Papantla, Veracruz, these inequities intersect with substantial socioeconomic and geographic vulnerabilities. Approximately 76% of the population identifies as Indigenous, primarily Totonac, while 69.7% lives in poverty and 21.6% in extreme poverty. Older adults aged 60 years and above represent 15.5% of the population. Agriculture, particularly vanilla and citrus production, is the core of the region’s economy and Totonac heritage. However, physically demanding agricultural work, limited social protection, and restricted access to specialized health services may contribute to mobility limitations and loss of independence among older and working-age adults.
Health services in many localities are also constrained by limited availability of specialized physicians and equipment. In response, our research will explore a community-based rehabilitation model that combines a lending bank for low-risk assistive and rehabilitation devices with remote clinical and rehabilitation support. The model aims to improve access to rehabilitation, promote functional independence, reduce unnecessary out-of-pocket expenditures, and develop a potentially replicable approach for other hard-to-reach communities.
