PIPA in Montevideo: visit to UDELAR's Pediatric Environmental Unit strengthens network of care for children

Em uma visita de referência para o fortalecimento da saúde ambiental infantil no Brasil, a coordenadora geral do PIPA, Carmen Fróes, e as pediatras Profa. Maria Amélia Porto e Profa. Cássia Vaz participaram da Conferência Latinoamericana de Salud Ambiental Ocupacional na Universidad de la República (UDELAR), em Montevidéu, Uruguai. O evento reuniu pesquisadores e profissionais de saúde em torno da temática da exposição de crianças a poluentes ambientais, com destaque para a contaminação por chumbo.

UDELAR maintains a Pediatric Environmental Unit (UPA) whose objective is to create care responses in children's environmental health, strengthening early diagnosis, care, and rehabilitation of the pediatric population exposed to toxicological and environmental risks. A pioneer in Latin America in this care model, the UPA is part of the Department of Toxicology of the Faculty of Medicine of UDELAR.

The unit's proposal is to strengthen care, teaching, extension, and research in child environmental health, through a structure fully integrated with the Primary Care Network and in close coordination with the pediatric hospital in the toxicology area.

During the visit to the UPA, the team was received by the hospital administration and primary health care professionals. The agenda included learning about the clinical protocols adopted by the unit: the examinations performed, the questionnaires applied, and the multidisciplinary composition of the team.