Help arrives at Meta

Tecpetrol made two of several deliveries of ventilators and supplies to health institutions in Puerto Gaitán and Villavicencio, in the Department of Meta, Colombia, for the care of the population and medical personnel in this pandemic context.

 To contribute to the equipment and preparation of health care centers in the Meta Department, where Tecpetrol operates in Blocks CPO-07 and CPO-13, a first part of the donations stipulated by the company was delivered on May 4 and 5.

The health of the community people and workers has always been an essential value for the company. In this context, where the Covid-19 situation is advancing globally, the Tecpetrol Community Relations team, along with the corporate representatives of the Techint Group, worked on a survey of all centers and neighboring populations to their activities. In this way, a map of needs and priorities was obtained, and various actions to be undertaken were planned.

Colombia is the first country where Tecpetrol is present that received its assistance. In both Puerto Gaitán and Villavicencio, two ventilators (one for each center) were delivered, and the delivery of basic supplies that make up the complete biomedical safety kit is being prepared. “We are proud to contribute to addressing this situation and especially to you, as medical personnel on the front line. We know you are fighting to save many people, and we believe that with this we can add a grain of sand,” said Catalina Echeverri, Community Relations coordinator for Tecpetrol in Colombia.

Doctor Juan José Muñoz, manager of the State Social Enterprise (ESE) of Meta, expressed that “the new ventilator will not only be key to treating possible Covid-19 patients but is also a great contribution for the Puerto Gaitán Health Care Center to get closer to providing secondary level care, which is a major goal ahead.”.

For her part, Maryury Díaz, manager of the Villavicencio Departmental Hospital, expressed: “We thank you for all this immense support. With this equipment, we save lives, and that is our mission at this moment. Among the good things generated by this contingency, we find the coordination of different sectors that allows us to unite to overcome this situation. Thank you very much for this gesture of cordiality and teamwork. Ultimately, we are all here to ensure effective service for our department.”.

In addition to strengthening the health system with the delivery of ventilators to the hospitals of Puerto Gaitán and Villavicencio, Tecpetrol's contribution will include:

• More than 10,000 biosecurity items for health personnel: N95 masks, disposable surgical masks, Tychem suits, closed splash-proof goggles, nitrile gloves, and nasopharyngeal swabs.
• Cleaning products such as soaps and sodium hypochlorite for the population neighboring the operations and food support markets. Joint work with the medical brigade to educate against Covid-19 and support neighboring households in strengthening hygiene and biosecurity habits.