Mobile Hospital active in the northern border zone

Published Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Mobile Hospital active in
the northern border zone

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

A Mobile Medical Unit, so-called Mobile Hospital, was installed in the Canton of Los Chiles, Alajuela Province in the borderline with Nicaragua, due to the national emergency of the covid-19, announced Social Security.

This is an area with a high number of immigrant populations along the northern border. For that reason Social Security is anticipating an increase in medical service needs for that area, said Román Macaya-Hayes, president of Social Security.

According to Macaya, the institution has several mobile hospitals that have been used in different emergencies since 2016.

The Mobile Hospital serves as a preventive measure against possible scenarios in the area, due to the high flow of undocumented immigrants. In this case, one of the expected scenarios is the medical care for an increasing immigrant population, said Edual Alfaro-Barrantes, director of Los Chiles Hospital.

Another reason to install the mobile hospital is to increase medical services in rural areas due to the saturation of clinics and hospitals in the metropolitan area, Alfaro-Barrantes said. The greater metropolitan area consists of San José and its surrounding cities such as Alajuela, Heredia and Cartago.

According to Alfaro-Barrantes, the use of this type of hospital will alleviate spaces in the main hospitals for the exclusive care of patients with respiratory problems and those infected with covid-19.

The Mobile Hospital was installed to serve as an emergency room for patients who present other pathologies. There are three modules inside the mobile hospital. Two measuring 52 square meters and one measuring 26 square meters, for a total work area of 130 square meters, reported Social Security.

Module one functions as the pre-check for patients. Module two is where patients will be checked. The space in the second module only allows for two patients to be attended simultaneously. And module three is a patient observation room.

Each unit has available portable desks, stretchers, chairs, hand washing areas, medical equipment, independent air conditioning and electrical installation.

The mobile hospital will remain in operation indefinitely as the country faces the covid-19 emergency.

These mobile hospitals are part of the government plan to deal with the medical crisis caused by covid-19. Last month the exclusive Hospital for patients with the virus opened to the public.

On March 31, the first hospital in the country, Specialized Patient Care Center with Covid-19, CEACO, began operating exclusively for the care of patients infected with the coronavirus covid-19, announced Social Security. The hospital was built in the facilities of the former National Rehabilitation Center in La Uruca District, San José Province.

"CEACO will be our shield hospital in the protection of people whose health is compromised by covid-19 and who require specialized medical care," said Román Macaya Hayes, president of the Social Security.

"The complete rebuild of this medical center, with the best technology and the best professionals, will serve to save the lives of many patients," said President Carlos Alvarado.

Among the main upgrades in the hospital was a fiber-optic network for the use of medical records, the installation network for medical gases and oxygen systems, air conditioning equipment, medical equipment, among other improvements.

Also, the hospital was provided with specialized equipment such as 48 pulmonary ventilators, 2 video laryngoscopes, 1 portable X-ray equipment, 88 secretion aspirators, 88 MSV transport vehicles, 22 infrared non-contact thermometers, plasma equipment for the sterilization of medical equipment, among others.

The new hospital can attend 88 patients in intensive care with a team of 1,350 specialists, who will work three shifts, 24 hours a day.

The new medical resources, infrastructure and equipment will enable two types of patients to be attended, those who require support through a pulmonary ventilator and who need more intensive monitoring, and patients who require hospitalization for covid-19 pathology.

Social Security invested $16 million to develop the hospital.

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