Due to lack of resources, the construction of the new building that will house the Chapala Red Cross has been on hold for a month and a half; it will continue indefinitely, reported the president of the Local Council of the Mexican Red Cross in Chapala, Yolanda Martínez Llamas.
“We only work when we have money and that is how we move forward, but if it runs out, we stop. For this we have events and we rely on donations. The Red Cross only relies on their big hearts and donations to continue buying what is needed and to be able to pay the salaries of the workers,” explained Martínez Llamas.
It is intended that, apart from offering better facilities, there will be at least two or three specialties, as well as emergencies. As for the current building, it will be seen what can be saved, since it is quite deteriorated.
The first stone of the new facilities was laid on May 8, 2023 with the presence of municipal and state authorities, as well as national and foreign community benefactors.
During the laying of the first stone, the national vice president and delegate in Jalisco of the Red Cross, Miguel Ángel Domínguez Morales, reported that the new facilities of the Chapala delegation would be carried out in three stages. The first of the stages was budgeted at around 9 million pesos.
The collection for this new building began with one million pesos. Of this donation, 28 thousand pesos were donated on July 7, 2023 by the Chapala City Council.
As for the hemodialysis clinic, it is awaiting permission from the Federal Commission for Protection against Risks (COFEPRIS), since in order to open to the public, the work on the new building must be completed, due to issues of dirt and dust.
Once the clinic is open to the community, it will be managed in the same way as the Red Cross, that is, with a recovery fee to be able to have it and maintain it with what is needed to offer this service to the community.
The Renal Health Clinic has five dialysis and hemodialysis machines that can provide four daily services per machine, from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and there is enough space to house seven more machines. The facilities also have a nursing area, a waiting room, and will be attended by up to nine people. The clinic will have the capacity to provide around 520 monthly sessions.
The estimated cost for each hemodialysis is around 1,100 pesos, but a subsidy will be sought from the municipal government and the private sector to make the service more accessible to residents who need the service.
The Chapala Red Cross provides around 1,200 services on a monthly basis and has around 45 employees including paramedics, nurses, doctors, and administrative staff.
Source: seminariolaguna
