Telemedicine services begin at the Luis Ablanque de la Plata District Hospital in Buenaventura

Within the framework of the strategy Hospital Padrino ProPacífico and in partnership with Fundación Valle del LiliThe Luis Ablanque de la Plata District Hospital in Buenaventura will have access to the technological and service platform that will allow it to strengthen its response capacity in the context of Covid-19.

Starting in June, residents of Buenaventura will have access to remote, technology-based hospital care. Services will initially be offered in the specialties of maternal care, pediatrics, infectious diseases, internal medicine, and intensive care, with a primary focus on strengthening Buenaventura's medical staff in the care of critically ill COVID-19 patients.

Hospital Padrino It is a ProPacífico strategy that seeks to contribute to the efficient management of the health system in different municipalities, through innovative mechanisms that strengthen the quality of health services, improving access for the population and the timeliness of care.

The strategy consists of a collaborative work scheme in which a public or private hospital of high complexity and certified as high quality (Sponsor Hospital), accompanies and technically supports a hospital of low and medium complexity (Sponsored Hospital), with the objective of developing and strengthening its hospital management, administrative and clinical capacities and thereby guaranteeing care to its users in an effective, timely and quality manner.

The sponsoring hospital aims to develop the capabilities of the sponsored hospital, with the goal of improving the quality of care to the point where it can achieve quality accreditation from Icontec. This is accomplished through support in three main areas: guidance in administrative management, support in training healthcare professionals, and clinical support through telemedicine (problem-solving capabilities). The actions for each area are designed to be implemented gradually, according to the identified needs and capabilities of the sponsored hospital.

“Our goal is to improve the quality of healthcare services. That's why we have built, together with the Fundación Valle del Lili the Program of Hospital Padrino "This allows us to have the best medical knowledge at the service of those who need it most. Starting this month, Buenaventura will have the direct support of top-level medical professionals to better serve its residents," stated Maria Isabel Ulloa, Executive Director of ProPacífico.

This project is carried out in two phases: the first with emphasis on education for the correct management of emergencies in the aforementioned specialties, under the direction of specialist physicians and experts in comprehensive treatment of high complexity. Fundación Valle del LiliThe second is remote support with communication technologies (Telemedicine) with the purpose of facilitating access and timeliness in the care of clinical entities, with a high impact on the supply of health services in Buenaventura where the capacity to attend to complex cases of COVID-19 is precarious.

The program led by ProPacífico in partnership with Fundación Valle del LiliIt relies on telehealth strategies that include a large component of Tele-education which, at the highest academic level, prepares the medical teams of the sponsored hospital, thus ensuring the transfer of knowledge, the strengthening of local capacities, and the continuity and follow-up of the patients treated.

“As a leading healthcare provider in the Valle del Cauca region, we are very pleased to sponsor the Luis Ablanque de la Plata District Hospital during this challenging time. We share a common goal: to save lives, and we must act quickly in the face of the difficult reality brought on by the pandemic. In Buenaventura, we have found the willingness and commitment to make telemedicine services a reality,” stated Dr. Maria Fernanda Escobar, head of the telemedicine service at the hospital. Fundación Valle del Lili.

Since 2019, ProPacífico and the Fundación Valle del LiliThey also achieved the implementation of the program Hospital Padrino The experience at the San José Hospital Foundation in Buga was fundamental in considering expanding the project's scope to Buenaventura. The decision to bring this project to the district was based on the evident need highlighted by the indicators of extreme maternal mortality and morbidity, as well as the high level of COVID-19 infection and mortality in the city.