Buenos Aires, January 2022. "Kilometres take us apart, but technology brings us closer. This is what happened on our last trip to Misiones, where networking showed its brilliance in saving a life through teamwork," says Ivana Carolina Rodríguez, a nurse on the ETPA team, with emotion.
ETPA, Enfermería Trabajando por Amor, is a Civil Association in formation created by four friendly nurses, integrated by a multidisciplinary team. Its objective is to provide assistance and health education to communities in vulnerable situations. At the moment of carrying out a mission, as we do not yet have the legal documentation of the organisation, it is the volunteers who pay for the expenses of the mission.
Since their initiation on the path of solidarity, they have been in contact with EXO Argentina, through Cascos Blancos, an organisation with which EXO has a working alliance. The area of Social Responsibility and Sustainability of the technology company provided them with a Mobile Diagnostic Centre - CDM, which allows them to perform 12-lead electrocardiograms (ECG); PANI, Non Invasive Blood Pressure; SpO2, Oximetry, Blood Oxygen Saturation; and TEMP, Surface Temperature. This equipment can be manipulated by nursing or medical staff, giving the possibility, if required, to carry out a videoconference with a cardiology specialist, the latter receiving all the information collected on any computer or mobile device in real time or asynchronously. Fernando González, EXO's Social Responsibility and Sustainability Manager, pointed out the importance of this type of instrument for the early detection of a pathology.
The quote at the beginning of the article refers to the last trip that the group made to Misiones in the locality of San Ignacio, more precisely in native Guaraní communities called Ivy-Poty and Kokuere-i, a population to which they regularly go to monitor both care and education.
Prepared for the unexpected
On the last day of the campaign, almost back in Buenos Aires, Romina Martin, a nurse from the ETPA team, received a message from one of the community teachers informing them that her mother was feeling unwell, especially in the pit of her stomach and chest. For this reason, they decided to go to the home of Beatriz, better known as "Bety", to provide her with medical care.
"When we arrived at the house, we noticed that Bety had cold sweats and a certain degree of pallor," observed Melanie Navarro, an ETPA nurse.
Using the CDM, vital signs were monitored and an electrocardiogram (ECG) was performed. In the latter, paediatrician Junior Guerra, together with the nurses, were able to identify an alteration in the tracing. However, they decided to extend the teamwork, involving the clinical doctor Pedro Olaechea as well as the cardiologist Rivero Soledad, who were both in Buenos Aires. Both professionals were notified of the situation through phone calls and images sent. On evaluating the ECG, they confirmed with greater specificity that Bety was having an infarction, and it was then that the nurses, under medical indication, administered medication, known in these cases as an attack dose. Together with the relatives, it was decided to accompany the patient to the Hospital de San Ignacio, where they continued with the first aid, while the ambulance was sent to the hospital in Posadas, where she would later undergo the corresponding intervention for this pathology.
"When I received the tests, I clearly saw that it was severe and that it was essential to transfer her to a more complex care centre where she could be treated and given the necessary life-saving care," said Dr. Rivero.
"When you have the conviction and love for what you do, these things happen: beyond the use of technology, the key was to have believed in the patient. That's what saved his life," Dr Rivero said. "That is what motivates us to move forward, the things that feed our souls and believe in what we do: they believed in their patient above all things and made it possible for her to be healthy at home today," she said.
The ETPA team will travel again to follow up the communities in April from the 14th to the 17th. It is important to note that they only count on funding from the active volunteer to be able to carry out their missions. For this specific case the organisation informs us that they will need:
- 4×4 vans
- Fuel financing
- Medicines (contact ETPA and they will share with you the list of drugs)
- Gazebos
ETPA invites you to join in by contributing to the growth of those who need it most! For any questions or actions in solidarity, please contact them through their social networks.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/etpa.solidaria/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/etpa_solidaria/?hl=es-la
Twitter: https://twitter.com/etpa_solidaria
Hay Team
During the visit to the Guarani communities of San Ignacio the ETPA team was composed of:
Diego Cunille - Adult Surgeon
Ezequiel Stefan - Logistics Support Volunteer
Ivana Carolina Rodríguez- Nurse in paediatrics and adults
Junior Guerra - Paediatrician
Melanie Navarro -Adult nurse
Romina Martín - Neonatology Nurse
Valeria Frasca- Paediatric Surgeon
They attended remotely and selflessly:
Soledad Rivero - Clinical Cardiologist and Head of Health at the Argentinean Antarctic Bases
Pedro Olaechea - Clinical Physician