Three social protection centers, located in the municipalities of Las Tunas, Majibacoa and Jesús Menéndez, temporarily house around thirty people with wandering behavior in the province, who are protected against the danger of being infected with the new SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
Miguel González Velázquez, deputy director of Prevention, Assistance and Social Work at the Provincial Directorate of Labor, stated that since the territory did not have a specific site for the care of these citizens, the essential material conditions for their safety in the current epidemiological context were created.
González Velázquez explained that in “Amancio”, “Colombia”, Jobabo, Manatí and Puerto Padre, the place of reception is determined depending on the characteristics of each case and it may be in a social institution such as a nursing home or a health institution if the person has criteria for admission.
The wandering people are detected, identified and picked up by the National Revolutionary Police, which transports them to the protection institutions, where they are given the necessary supplies for their stay.
If they have a residence established in another province, the transfer to it is processed, González Velázquez said, adding that if they have relatives, they have the obligation to offer them protection.
In the provincial capital, the protection center operates in the Pioneers Palace, where 22 residents with this behavior receive food through the Family Care System and permanent health care through a basic team to which is added a social worker.
All of them underwent the rapid test to detect COVID-19, they are explained the sanitary protection measures and they are constantly monitored, said Dr. LedyIdsel Zamora, a specialist in Comprehensive General Medicine.
For his part, the social worker Eyelber Guzmán Santisteban, states that this experience has enriched him as a professional and human being.
"The love that God has impregnated in our hearts makes us care for these people and do it with dedication. I have seen a dream come true. I have had the opportunity to be able to serve them, and the work here has allowed me to get to know them better, talk to them and know of their lives and daily walk. It has given me a lot, here you learn what is behind each person and you are able to sensitize yourself and feel empathy towards them," said the young employee of the Municipal Labor Directorate.
Referring to the care in the center and the stay there, Abel Sastre Cruz, said: "Here I feel perfect, better than at home, where I live alone and sometimes I don't eat breakfast, lunch or dinner. The treatment and attention are very good. The food was special. I arrived half-drunk, and they immediately attended to me, fed me and even shaved me. The one who complains is because he is a bad thankful person."
