In October 2019, a CardioStart pediatric cardiac team will return to the Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño (Children’s) Hospital, Lima, where we had assisted previously, to continue development of the Pediatric Cardiac Development Programs.
There remains a large number of children needing evaluation; from several regions, particularly in the interior of the country.Tertiary evaluation is still not possible at the moment. The healthcare need continues to be a pressing requirement. Approximately 45% of the people of Peru live in poverty leaving preventive healthcare limited.Pre- and post-natal care is also limited in availability for expectant mothers. Those with cardiac problems, therefore, may not survive long. Those who do survive may not necessarily be diagnosed and successfully placed on a waiting list. The families, and the healthcare ministry often do not have enough funds available to provide full care for the indigent and this group is often only able to provide assistance with the help of occasional international visiting teams.
This mission, the 14th for CardioStart to Peru spanning 20 years (to this and other centers in Lima region), will focus on advancing surgical, anesthetic and nursing care practices to improve outcomes for children currently being operated there. Most of the features of general cardiac care are in place in the hospital, and in some areas, excellent care was available. The frustration of the local team is an ongoing problem in taking on more complex cases. They continue to struggle with a lack of some equipment and disposables. Late presenting cases increase their morbidity and complexity.
EDUCATION
Surgical teaching will be carried out in the Operating room by supporting the surgery itself and OR management.
In the ICU, The team volunteers will apply CardioStarts’ mission of side-by-side education in every area assisted.Education sessions included:hands-on Basic Life Support/CPR, Alarm Fatigue in Critical Care, and various management scenarios.
All team members must arrive in Lima by no later than Saturday October 19th, 2019 for the evening team orientation.
Airfare: Airfare costs will be self-funded by each volunteer. Many of us have found that www.lanperu.com from Miami or Los Angeles provides very competitive prices, but for some with air miles to cash in, other options may be preferential. When planning flights consider the most convenient international embarkation point first in calculating fare prices. Domestic travel can sometimes be negotiated separately and often, much cheaper.DO NOT BOOK FLIGHTS UNTIL YOU ARE A CONFIRMED PARTICIPANT ON THE TEAM!
Lodging:CardioStart is negotiating for the hotel costs to be borne by the local Rotary. We will advise you as soon as this issue is resolved. CardioStart seeks certain minimum standards to ensure volunteer safety and comfort as well as keeping the team together. Volunteers should expect same-sex room sharing in order to help reduce the costs.
Meals: During the day, meals will be available at the hospital. Evening meals/snacks, etc. are available in the many excellent restaurants in Lima, at the volunteer’s own expense, and are of a high standard, safe to eat and very inexpensive ($5-$8).
Travel/touring: Since you will already be in Peru, you may like to take a few days vacation after the mission ends.We encourage you to do so and visit some of the many natural wonders of Peru. This could include the thousand-year-old town of Cusco and the Ancient City of the Incas, the World Heritage Site called Machu Picchu.If you do this, plan an overnight stay in Cusco which can be reached by a cheap flight to the city, then a train from Cusco, (situated at 12,000 ft.) to Machu Picchu (altitude, 8000ft) as a day excursion. This is a 15th century Inca citadel.You will want to consider the altitude before making your flight arrangements. One can usually obtain a cheap travel package during the week of arrival. This time is not part of the CardioStart mission; therefore, make your own tour arrangements and costs and it is easy to do inside the country. Do NOT make excursion trips prior to the mission, as the cardiac conference is likely to be on Sunday prior to starting the mission.
Safety:Lima Peru is a Level One Travel Advisory Precaution.Exercise NORMAL Precautions.If you plan travel outside of Lima please go to travel.state.gov to assess the risks of other areas within the country.
Selection will be on a “first come – first served” basis, however, CV/Resumes and applications will bereviewed by our Mission Director for approval.You will be notified within 2 weeks of your status and if selected for the team, you will receive the Team Registration Packet with full instructions from our main office in Tampa Florida.
Subsequent information will be sent by e-mail; therefore, we request that you provide us with a personal email address. (Volunteers using hospital or company web servers have sometimes found that their institution’s spam filters block attachments).
Leave A Comment