The loss of a loved one at home as another victim of the pandemic. Seeing him leave with nothing to do because the symptoms evolved so quickly that it was not possible to take him to a hospital. And then, fight and beg for some authority to take over the corpse that begins to decompose.
It happened in Bogotá itself to a family that had to spend 25 hours with the body of his grandfather, Don Héctor Riveros, wrapped in plastic while IPS, EPS, funeral homes and health authorities were taking turns giving answers.
25 hours in which, according to the family, they had to treat the body, begin to endure odors and liquids that it gave off and, of course, bear the enormous pain of the death of Don Héctor at 91 years of age.
(You may be interested in: Possible shortage of doctors for ICU, another challenge facing the peak of the pandemic)
For the Riveros family, in reality, the covid-19 has been hell. Héctor was the first fatality. His wife remains in intensive care for the same virus. Two sons have already gone through the ICU and his other two daughters, the same ones who lived with him and had to wrap him in plastic, tested positive, although they show mild symptoms.
Priscila, one of them, 60, tells that two weeks ago Don Héctor, who suffered from Alzheimer’s and cancer, had a health complication and had to be hospitalized. Upon returning home, her children began to show symptoms.
The test of covid-19 was made to Don Héctor on July 2. At that time his wife was already hospitalized, but he was not because his symptoms were mild. The results came last Thursday morning with a confirmed diagnosis for the new coronavirus, and the 91-year-old man began to worsen his health with enormous difficulty breathing.
(In other news: The lapse of Daniel Quintero in delivery of government fans)
At 2:15 in the morning on Friday Don Héctor passed away. The daughters, in the midst of their grief, first called line 123 to report the death and ask what to do. From there they were told to contact the EPS and the Ministry of Health. At 9 am, representatives of an IPS arrived at the house, recorded the death and helped wrap the body in plastic.“Later they contact you to collect the body,” they were told.
Later they contact you to collect the body
–
–
Hours passed without anything happening and another round of paperwork began. Neither the EPS, nor the Ministry of Health nor the funeral home gave a specific answer because They assured that they did not see the death certificate reflected on the platform arranged by the Ministry of Health for that purpose. Despair increased in the family.
They sought help in the media and directly with officials from the Ministry of Health. And 25 hours later – in the early hours of this Saturday – workers from the Gaviria Funeral Home, with the authorization in hand, arrived at the apartment located in the Pablo VI neighborhood to collect the body of Don Héctor.
(Also: Another powerful Colombian drug trafficker finishes paying a sentence in the United States.)
According to an official from the Ministry of Health told the family, the error would have originated in the company that went to record the death at 9 am on July 10, but did not upload the death to the platform arranged to these cases.
“The company Health & Life EPS not only did not upload the registration to the platform, but it did not respond to our calls and requirements or give any response. And meanwhile Don Héctor’s body in a room. We are going to file a complaint against them ”, a family member said in dialogue with this newspaper, who assured that he will file a complaint.
(We suggest: Bogotá: Can I go to work if I am in a quarantined location?)
Experts consulted state that the IPS in charge of death certificates must notify the entities in charge of making the final disposition of the corpses quickly to avoid this type of situation.
HEALTH UNIT
–
