Health care unit for truck drivers in Porto Seco de Uruguaiana completes one year helping to fight the pandemic

In 12 months, 700 nursing consultations were carried out, 1,100 vaccines applied against H1N1 influenza, 2,500 screens for the detection of Covid-19, in addition to rapid tests for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, syphilis and HIV

This March, the first Sentinel Health Unit for Truck Driver Workers in Brazil, installed in the second largest Dry Port in Latin America, in the city of Uruguaiana, Rio Grande do Sul, completes one year of operation. Implanted by the Regional Reference Center for Occupational Health (Cerest Oeste), it is the only place in the entire border region in the country to offer health services to truck drivers who cross the country. The initiative has the support of Multilog, the company that manages the port, the Health Department of Alegrete and Uruguaiana, the Public Ministry of Labor and the Federal Revenue Service.

Over this period, more than 700 nursing consultations were carried out, about 1,100 H1N1 vaccines were administered, nearly 2,500 screenings were performed to detect Covid-19, in addition to rapid tests for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, syphilis and HIV; Body Mass Index (BMI) calculations, blood pressure and glucose measurement. Educational actions were also carried out to prevent the spread of the pandemic and the well-being of men's health.

“The work that the Sentinel Unit does is fundamental. The project, both in testing, disseminating health information and preventive actions, is essential for the safety of professionals and the follow-up of health protocols. The initiative collaborates a lot in the fight against Covid-19. Drivers are workers who perform essential activities, therefore, it is necessary that they receive this attention and this support ”, says Lilian Stum, nurse and coordinator of Sector Covid-19 in Uruguaiana, and was secretary of health in the municipality at the time of the inauguration of the unit .

Around 1,100 thousand truck drivers pass through the place every day, coming from all regions of the country. Consultations and exams continue in 2021 and are carried out free of charge, from Monday to Friday, from 8 am to 2 pm, upon presentation of the SUS card.