Today was another interesting day in Buenos Aires. The day started out early this morning when our van was late to pick us up. After 30 minutes of waiting, we decided to take radio taxis to the Sanatorio de los Arcos for our first lecture of the day. This was my first taxi experience ever, and it was quite an experience. Driving is a very different dynamic here, and oftentimes drivers don’t stop at stop signs! Our taxi driver weaved in and out of cars very fast, but at least we made it to our destination fast!
Dr. Josefina Medrano gave us our first lecture of the day. She was the former ministry of health of the province Salta, located in the northwest of Argentina. Unlike Buenos Aires, this province is more remote with many mountains and jungles. She spent most of her time talking about how COVID-19 impacted Salta and the measures hospitals took there to help infected citizens. During the presentation, Dr. Medrano explained each province had the power to make its own decisions regarding covid. She spoke in detail on her decision to shut down hospitals and mandate quarantines during this time. This reminded me of federalism because of the powers the provincial and national government have in Argentina. Both the provincial and national government had the shared power to mandate masks and lockdowns. The national government did have some power the provincial doesn’t have, such as giving out extra social security money during the pandemic. After her presentation, she told us she put a small piece of paper under two chairs, and whoever had the piece of paper got a prize. Surprisingly, the paper was under my seat, and she gave me a cool mate cup! Mate is a popular South American caffeinated herbal drink.
After speaking with Dr. Medrano, the van showed up and we went to Hospital Fernandez, a public hospital in Buenos Aires. We met the director of the hospital where he discussed Hospital Fernandez’s approach to covid. It was interesting to hear how this hospital adapted to extra patients quickly. We then went on a tour of the hospital. This hospital was not as nice and new as the private hospital we visited Monday, but it still was a cool experience.
Later on in the day, we went on a walking tour of a beautiful neighborhood called Recoleta. As we explored this neighborhood, I felt like I was on the streets of Paris or Rome. The buildings were beautiful and modern. We passed several palaces which were homes to important Argentines many years ago. There were many luxurious shops and boutiques, and several bakeries with the most amazing desserts in the window. While in Recoleta, we visited the famous Recoleta cemetery. Many notable people were buried in this incredible place. This cemetery was not like a typical one, but the graves were personalized and enormous. It was a really cool experience to look at the different designs families had made and ways they honored their loved ones.
These are some pictures of the buildings in Recoleta.
Today was a very rewarding day. I learned so much about the public healthcare sector and its steps to conquering the COVID-19 pandemic. I enjoyed visiting beautiful neighborhood of Recoleta and learning about the historic elements of this unique place.
This is a picture of the outside of the cemetary.