Today we went back to Austral University for some more lectures. First we heard from Dra. Diana Farina about the public sector, followed by Dr. Ruben Torre who spoke about the national social security system in Argentina known as the Obras Sociales. Argentina has a clear federalist system pertaining to the organization of their healthcare…

Today was less of an experiential day and more of a day filled with lecture style learning. We had many lectures to demonstrate and educate us on the different types of private insurance stakeholders, such as private and union payers. We had lectures at Austral University. The first lecture was from the medical director at…

Today we took a day trip to Uruguay! We woke up super early in the morning to get on the giant ferry boat and cross customs into Uruguay. I didn’t know that you had to cross customs twice consecutively, Argentina and Uruguay. The boat ride was fun, although I got a bit motion sick towards…

Today was an eventful day yet again, now exploring the history of Argentina through museums like the Evita museum and a walking tour of Recoleta ending in the cemetery. This historical context is critical to the understanding of the Argentinean healthcare system, especially through the role of General Juan Peron and Evita to the development…

Public versus private healthcare delivery systems of Argentina have vast differences in the nature of their structures and the quality and objectives of their care. We started off the morning visiting Sanatorio Mater Dei, which was unlike any other hospital we have seen thus far. Sanatorio Mater Dei was founded by Germans, and has a…

Today we explored the relationship between the rural municipalities surrounding Buenos Aires and the city center. We started our morning by visiting La Matanza Hospital and doing a guided tour. La Matanza hospital had primary, secondary, and even tertiary levels of care. The facility was huge, with many corridors and rooms, and just about every…

Today was another super eventful day. Today we explored deeper into the technicalities of medical and financial scaffolding which bolsters the Argentinean medical system behind the scenes. We started off the day by taking a boat to Tigre and getting the opportunity to see a public clinic and water ambulance. This clinic served a more…

On our first full day in Buenos Aires we got to see both ends of the healthcare spectrum. First we visited a small, local volunteer organization which targeted their help towards mothers of a lower socioeconomic status, before doing a complete 180° and visiting Austral university, a larger, private organization specializing in research and tertiary…

The first day in Argentina went much better than I expected. Upon arrival, I noticed immediately how clean the city was. It was just as metropolitan as New York, but without the abundance of trash and unhoused people. The advertisements, billboards, and streets reminded me of American cities such as New York, however it seemed…