On Tuesday, October 27, 1998, Hurricane Mitch slammed into the Caribbean coast of Central America. United Nations officials have classified Mitch as the worst natural disaster to hit the region this century. In Honduras alone, over 14,000 lives, billions of dollars worth of crops, and 45 years of infrastructure development perished to flashfloods and landslides. “Those figures, however, are not capable of appraising the pain, the fear, and the insecurity people have suffered and are still experiencing,” reports Mary de Flores, the First Lady of Honduras. Many Hondurans, whose already scarce property and employment were devastated by the hurricane, are slowly working to rebuild housing and businesses as they always have, with only a short-term focus. But a growing contingent is breaking away from the traditional mentality toward public reconstruction, especially in the field of health care. This group sees not only a destroyed country but also a newfound opportunity to rebuild sustainable, modern medical system. These reformers recognize that Honduras’s fundamental well being rests on crafting an improved public health system.