VENEZUELA
INTERSOS INTERVENTION
INTERSOS has started a project in the state of Tàchira for the protection of vulnerable children through the establishment of the defensorias hospitalarias, defense and health protection facilities for boys, girls and adolescents in 6 hospitals identified in the state on the border with Colombia, starting from the hospital of San Cristòbal. We do psycho-social assistance remotely, with the creation of free telephone lines for beneficiaries directly reported by the hospitals involved in the project. We deal with the development of clear and effective ad hoc communication messages for the prevention of contagion, spread through social media and local radio and televisions. We train the medical staff on COVID-19 prevention measures and response and support a protection center for women victims of abuse in San Cristòbal.
CONTEXT
The combination of the COVID-19 pandemic, the influx of returnees and political conflict, keeps exacerbating the humanitarian landscape in the country, where only two COVID-19 laboratories are available: the first in Caracas and the second (mobile unit) in San Cristòbal. The government has adopted preventive measures that include 7 days of radical lockdown followed by 7 days of flexibilization. New restrictive measures have been declared for the states most affected by the infections, including Tàchira, where the lockdown is total. Any movement to cities bordering Colombia is prohibited. There is talk of more than 100,000 returning migrants who have returned to the country. According to the protocol activated by the Protectorado, they must be immediately tested for COVID-19, then divided by state and sent to one of the 23 PASI (Puesto Atencion Social Integral) available in the state of Tàchira, and after 14-17 days it is conducted a second test. If negative, they are sent home with a local bus organized by the Protectorado. Local media report deplorable living conditions within the PASI. A joint assessment between Protectorado and the United Nations system has been carried out in some PASI of San Cristòbal, but the outcome has not been widespread. Movements and refueling (which can only be found on the black market) remain critical aspects in Venezuela, together with electricity cuts: all this compromises the possibility of reaching health facilities, especially for rural communities.