Ana Stahl Adventist Clinic, hard hit by coronavirus, begins gradual reopening
Despite massive infections of the COVID-19 virus affecting 190 of its 245 employees, the Ana Stahl Adventist Clinic (Clínica Adventista Ana Stahl in Spanish) in Iquitos, Peru, is back in operation.
Substitute workers from Lima, Peru’s capital some 745 miles away, and doctors from Cuba came to the 94-year-old hospital at the gateway to Peru’s Amazon region to help while many regular staffers were ill. Reports indicated 80 percent of the population of Iquitos had contracted the new coronavirus, with hospitals including the Stahl Clinic admitting as many as 40 COVID-19 patients a day.
On May 23, the Ana Stahl Adventist Clinic announced the recovery of its doctors and the gradual restart of its activities in the Peruvian jungle. “God is merciful and has allowed the recovery of our collaborators. We need to help the public that is waiting for us and we are willing to work for them," said Dr. Milka Brañez, chief executive of the hospital.
Thus, online medical consultation services, pharmacy and laboratory care, and also the imaging area were reopened. The services are provided via “virtual” appointments, while pharmacy and imaging visitors are seen under strict biosecurity measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
"God never abandoned the clinic, on the contrary, He always showed that it is He who is in control of everything," Dr. Brañez said. That faithfulness was shown when x-ray technician Alex Maytahuari, was discharged May 30 after being admitted to intensive care with mechanical ventilation for COVID-19.
"We are more confident in God to continue serving the population of Iquitos," added Dr. Brañez.
This article was originally published on the South American Division’s Spanish site