Feature: Argentine hospital battles COVID-19 with supplies from China

A public hospital in the Argentine town of Ezeiza, located in southern Greater Buenos Aires, has been battling the novel coronavirus pandemic from the frontlines, armed with medical supplies from China.

According to Alejandro Rebollini, associate director of the Dr. Alberto Antranik Eurnekian Hospital, the facility was able to begin preparing for the pandemic as early as January thanks to its proximity to the Ezeiza International Airport, the main gateway to the capital Buenos Aires.

As a result, it was also the first Argentine hospital to treat victims of the COVID-19 outbreak.

"We were the first to receive patients from the airport. We had 170 patients, of which 22 tested positive," Rebollini told Xinhua during a tour of the facility.

The hospital, situated 30 kilometers south of the capital, first increased the number of beds available in its intensive care unit from eight to 30, and trained the staff in the preventive measures needed to stop the spread of the virus.

"We also modified the structure, dividing the hospital in two, with a totally separate COVID zone with separate operating rooms, pediatric and obstetric isolation rooms, and wards for suspected cases," said Rebollini.

Those entering the hospital must first pass through a disinfecting cabin that uses UV ozone to get rid of germs and other organisms, before undergoing a temperature check and smell tests. Loss of smell and taste is believed to be among the symptoms of COVID-19.

To adequately protect staff required "a large number of supplies" the hospital lacked, including personal protective equipment, or PPE, such as hospital-grade face masks, among other things, he noted.

"It has helped us very much that both the national and provincial governments made an agreement with China, receiving supplies such as bunny suits and gloves, as well as surgical masks and N95 masks," said Rebollini.

The hospital and Ezeiza "are very thankful" for the supplies from China, he added.

Argentina detected its first case of COVID-19 infection on March 3. Since then 31,577 people (as of Sunday) tested positive nationwide and 842 people died from the disease.