Support to the São José Hospital in Santiago do Chile

AMI´s presence in this south american country began in 2000 with the funding of a Medical Assistance Program for Minors in a Shelter for Abused Children implemented by the SACOJE Foundation – Sacred Heart of Jesus in Los Angeles, 500 km south of Santiago, with whom a partnership was established to support a health care project for these children. Contact with Chile was reactivated in June 2014 with the establishment of a new partnership with FAM – Fondation de Bienfaisance Auxilio Maltés, which built a center (unique in Chile) at the Hospital of San José dedicated to rehabilitating and improving the quality of life of victims of severe respiratory illnesses.

The San José Hospital is located in a crowded area of ​​the Chilean capital and receives patients from the northern sector.

The estimated population in the zone is of 650,000 inhabitants, being composed mainly by families of low income and in situation of vulnerability.

In the country there are no actions, be they public or private, aimed at the rehabilitation of people suffering from lung diseases. Usually, hospitals receive urgencies from patients with these conditions, stabilize them and send them home without any indication of treatment that avoids subsequent crises. The poorest patients do not benefit from any help to manage their illness.

The current project, aimed at directly guaranteeing the improvement of life of 112 patients / month, addressing the problem of respiratory diseases as a whole, aims to: A) Increase the number of attended people for this group of diseases, especially for oxygen-dependent patients ; B) Strengthen the equipment-related response of the center to allow the process of rehabilitation at home; (C) Improving the transport capacity of the most vulnerable users between their homes and the center; D) Improve the management of the center by training its staff.