To start off week two, we headed to Universidad Austral’s downtown campus. The first presentation was about OMINT insurance which is one of Argentina’s leading private, prepaid insurance companies. OMINT provides medical coverage and operates its own medical centers. Earlier in the trip we visited Clínica Bazterrica which is one of their medical clinics in Recoleta. Members pay a monthly premium, based on their level of coverage which grants them access to a network of private doctors, hospitals, and clinics. This differs from Obras Sociales, where workers and employees pay mandatory payroll contributions for insurance.  

The next presentation was from AMTENA, a non-profit humanitarian foundation that provides free specialized medical and surgical care to highly impoverished indigenous communities in northern Argentina. All their medical staff are volunteers, and all of their money and supplies are donated by private corporations. I thought it was very interesting because we got to see before and after pictures of their successful surgeries. This presentation was personally one of my favorites from this entire trip. It was awesome to hear how many medical professionals in Argentina are willing to volunteer their time and services to people in need. 

Next, we had some free time before our next activity. We ended up at Esmero Cafe for coffee and lunch. The food and drinks were so good. My favorite was the warm chocolate chip cookies we had for dessert. 

Our last presentation for the day was a workshop called “How Would You Build a Hospital From Scratch”. We learned about how Austral built a solidarity covid hospital in three months during the peak of the pandemic. We got to think about how we would handle the logistics and finances if we were in their position.