The rapid spread of the current COVID-19 pandemic confirms that, in a highly globalized international panorama, there are no borders for the spread of viral respiratory diseases and that these pathologies have become increasingly effective and guaranteed global.

In Guinea-Bissau, the rapid spread of COVID-19 has demonstrated the health system’s lack of preparedness to respond to outbreaks of this disease and other infectious diseases, as well as the existing vulnerabilities and underfunding problems of the health sector. The weaknesses of the National Health System of Bissau-Guinean are evident in the degraded material and infrastructural conditions of the various health structures of the country, as well as the limited availability, asymmetrically distributed and structural lack of training of the human resources attached to these health units. The hospitals designated to have COVID-19 isolation centers have precarious conditions and lack of medical equipment.

Guinea-Bissau represents a territory of high risk for the spread of outbreaks of new diseases, namely viral respiratory diseases with high rates of contagion, such as COVID-19, a fact recognized by the World Health Organization itself and patent in the Contingency Plan for the response to COVID-19, approved by the Bissau-Guinean political authorities in March 2020.

OBJECTIVES

Overall: to contribute to the strengthening of Guinea-Bissau’s response capacities to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Specific: to promote the improvement of the health services’ care capacities in the Guinea-Bissau reference structures that have been designated to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BENEFICIARIES

Direct: patients with COVID-19 and patients with severe acute respiratory syndromes, as well as health professionals affectionate to the reference health structures benefiting from the action, the Simão Mendes National Hospital, the Cumura Hospital and the Bor Hospital.

Indirect: at least 1,881,005 inhabitants of the 11 sanitary regions / 9 administrative regions that constitute Guinea-Bissau.

ACTIVITIES

Improving the material conditions of the 3 reference health care facilities in Bissau for the care of COVID-19 patients

• Technical option and acquisition of equipment for the action according to the priorities and operational effectiveness in combating COVID-19 taking into account the reality of Guinea-Bissau;
• Ensure the logistics for import, storage and distribution, installation and training for maintenance of equipment and clinical support materials;
• To train Bissau-Guinean health technicians in the correct use of the equipment and materials distributed.