Karina Niebla
06/19/2020 - 21:22
- Clarín.com
- Cities
Two weeks ago, the DetectAr operation was extended to the formal neighborhoods of the City, but is still present in the towns. In the Padre Ricciardelli neighborhood (ex 1-11-14) it has been done since May 12. 2,284 cases of coronavirus are concentrated there , almost 60% located with the DetectAr operation. There 35 deaths were registered. And there were this Friday afternoon the Secretary of Access to Health of the Nation, Carla Vizzotti, and the undersecretary of Primary, Ambulatory and Community Care of the City, Gabriel Battistella.
The first stop was at the “Madre del Pueblo” parish , on Perito Moreno Avenue, in front of the Pedro Bidegain stadium, the San Lorenzo stadium. The father Juan Isasmendi, one of the main references of the town, was waiting for them. The tour ended on the other side of the New Gasometer, under the South Platea, where the DetectAr point was installed to test the neighbors.
Isasmendi or, as they know him there, Father Juan, has his cell phone on fire. With the pandemic, its extrareligious role grew, that of being a node of community actions, which in practice may include ending up convincing a neighbor to isolate himself when the awareness-raising talk of health promoters was not enough. Also, organize the preventive isolation of older people or, in their own words, "chop the brains out of the State to come here . " He prefers to be modest and to highlight neighborhood solidarity.
The Secretary of Access to Health of the Nation, Carla Vizzotti, and the Undersecretary of Primary, Ambulatory and Community Care of the City, Gabriel Battistella, listen to Father Juan Isasmendi. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
“With the emergency, this neighborhood showed a very strong community core . I noticed an explosion of solidarity that I rarely saw, from neighbor to neighbor. A chain of protection was quickly put together for whoever went out, who was alone without food, ”explains Isasmendi behind the chinstrap.
That sense of community is also key even for DetectAr. Is that the operation has double action and the first is territorial, when looking for people with symptoms and also close contacts of infected . Members of social and neighborhood organizations, dining hall coordinators and people from the same parish participate in this instance, to accompany and assist. "Many times, our role is also to criticize and get angry so that everything improves," admits Isasmendi with a laugh.
DetectAr's base of operations in Bajo Flores is below the South Platea of the San Lorenzo field. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
This territorial action starts every day at 8:30 am, with pairs of personnel from the Ministries of Health and Human Development, who then accompany the residents to do the swapping at the entrance to the South Platea of the San Lorenzo Stadium, where it begins the second action, that of testing.
Before reaching the court, Vizzotti makes a clarification: “It is not that where that operation is not, it is not tested: DetectAr is a complement. The health system has consultations from the public and private sectors, a testing circuit, and wherever cases increase, contacts will be sought for their isolation . ”
Vizzotti explains that in places where cases increase, close contacts are sought to isolate them. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
The testing center for residents of the former 1-11-14 is different from that of other Buenos Aires villas. To begin with, the distances are greater here and the transfer is not on foot but in the classic orange school groups, which are partially occupied to comply with social distancing. Plus, there's the fact that he's on a soccer field . San Lorenzo loaned the City Government its stadium and its nearby residence for players with less than 80 seats, the latter to house light patients.
The New Gasometer was converted into a sanitary unit. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
The residents who take the test here then depart from the ex 1-11-14 by bus, go down in the New Gasometer parking lot and cross the archway that marks the entrance to the Platea Sur, with a fenced path. They walk a few meters and, before entering the federation gym and confectionery sector under the stands, they stop at the blue and red door crowned with a "Wait here to be attended" sign.
Neighbors arrive at school buses and are screened. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
Once inside, they find the triage station, a table with bottles of gel alcohol and chinstraps, and dozens of black plastic chairs, located on a blue floor where skateboarding was previously practiced. There they await the taking of samples. The neighbors give the data to prepare their epidemiological file, they are evaluated to establish if they fit in any case and if they present risk factors, and they are swabbed in the internal office . The samples are sent to the Malbrán Institute. The next step is to wait patiently for the result, in a fenced area with yellow BA Playa chairs and a view of the playing field.
On one side is the space where the neighbors wait to be swabbed. On the other, the place where the results await. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
It is known from the start: half of those waiting in this sector have the virus . This is indicated by the percentage of positivity registered by DetectAr since it started here. What they don't know is who. They will find out at sunset from the mouth of an official, who will read a list : name, surname and a laconic "positive" or "negative".
Whoever tests negative will return to the neighborhood. Whoever tests positive will stay at the residence and, if there is no more room, at the Covid-19 hotels. If you have moderate symptoms, you will go to a hospital instead. The closest here are the Piñero and the Grierson. Children under one year and those over 65 will also be admitted.
At the last minute, they read the names of each neighbor and indicate if they are positive or negative. Photo: Fernando de la Orden
When it is already night and there are families that combine confirmed and dismissed cases, it becomes difficult. Officials recognize it. Many cannot find a place to leave their children. Sometimes there are conflicts. In some, the Ombudsman's Office has to intervene.
"What is costing us more now is convincing mild patients that it is important to isolate yourself for at least ten days if you live in a popular neighborhood," explains the undersecretary. He may not feel so bad, but staying at home puts his family at risk. ”
NS