Medical care for those living in the Bolivian Amazon basin is challenging. Communities are isolated, with no roads, and river travel is dangerous. Often, our counterpart organization, Mano a Mano Aviation, is a solution. We can send a team of doctors and medical staff to set up a field hospital and triage patients–youth, dental, maternity, and adults. They could see 300 or more people on each visit. They bring in needed supplies, medications, and the newest: portable ultrasound equipment (POCUS). These units can help identify when a woman has a distressed pregnancy, or someone has a tumor or growth on an organ. Prior to this, we had to fly the patient out to a hospital. However, in the Amazon basin, many people don’t have birth certificates or government identification. As a result, they can’t typically use public transportation or be admitted to a hospital that isn’t in their state.
Until now. With the new Level 2 Hospital in Cochabamba, we can transport a patient out and admit them. We can not guarantee quality care from when we arrive in a meadow or field with our Cessna 208 (STOL-short take off and landing) to when we provide the medical procedure and return them safely to their communities. Here is a peek at our hospital: