Her tears flow from her alert eyes despite her attempts to hide them; sweat rushes down her forehead, and then a smile lights up her face behind the mask. She is loquacious and confident in her performance. She is there, standing, in the trench of every day, the Medical Office 16, located in Constituency 27 of the Popular Council 4; but, today, the atmosphere seems hopeful. She is the nurse Madelín Ávila, who puts a dose of "Abdala" on the shoulders of her patients.
Las Tunas, Cuba.- Even though she accumulates 15 years in Nursing, 10 of them in Primary Health Care, she has not been able to avoid a certain tension, not contain the emotion of knowing that her hands “pushed” the vaccine that will protect her father, her uncle, and many of the neighbors who saw her born from the COVID-19.
“In the midst of the situations that the country is going through, this is the best example of the Cubans who fight against the devastating pandemic. I feel very proud to be a participant in this important and waited moment by our people. Here, we must immunize around 1,634 patients, including those who belong to Medical Office 15.
The lists, the nurse says, were made with the support of the presidents of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR), the delegate of the constituency, and the representative of the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC) so as not to leave out anyone, even "those who, due to family situations, are temporarily in our health area, or live in other provinces and will remain here during this process."
The biotechnological product should not be administered to those who have suffered from COVID-19, patients with an acute disease at the time of immunization, or with other decompensated chronic ones; neither those allergic to any component of the vaccine.
Initially, "Abdala" will benefit more than 159 thousand 300 inhabitants in the five health areas of the provincial capital, due to the high incidence of confirmed patients in this city; also to pregnant and women who breastfeed from all over the province. Then, it will be extended to complete about 385 thousand people. Many are the health professionals, like Madelín, who strive to make this common dream come true.
