Thousands of children fight for survival on the streets of Bolivia's capital La Paz every day. They are often defenceless in the face of hunger and abuse - and when illness strikes, they have no chance without a caregiver or medical care.
But things have changed since the Street Doctors came into being: in our three mobile children's surgeries, a doctor, a dentist and a nurse look after the physical and mental well-being of the helpless children free of charge. They are there for them, listen, give a hug and help wherever they can.
Hard to imagine for us: In Bolivia's prisons, many children also live in conditions unworthy of life - the Street Doctors' ambulances also look after their health.
In addition, the schools in the hotspots are visited and the children there receive ongoing medical care. Here, too, untreated illnesses and malnutrition are the order of the day and the children are very grateful for this help.

Current events

COVID-19 Situation

Thanks to the good organization of the elections and the low-conflict transition of power, there was no increase in the number of infected persons, as had been feared in some quarters. On the contrary, the positive trend continued, and the proportion of healthy people among those infected rose to over 80 % in November. Although the quarantine measures, which had long been very strict, were further relaxed in November, the Ministry of Health continues to urge citizens to practice hygiene and reduced contact. General wearing of a mouth guard is still mandatory in November, and schools remain closed. Nevertheless, public life has picked up noticeably since October.
The easing of tensions is being used to launch initiatives to strengthen the health system and expand international cooperation in the area of health. Agreements to this effect have been reached with Japan, Germany and Spain, for example. A severe second wave is to be avoided at all costs and timely access to vaccines is to be ensured. President Arce is using the UN General Assembly in early December to conduct negotiations on the supply of coronavirus vaccines. He expressed the expectation that the first batches could be delivered to Bolivia as early as the first quarter of 2021.

Visit to the jungle village of Coroico

Reporting

Project report

In November, the Street Doctors were again able to treat significantly more patients after several months of Corona-related limited operation. A total of 1155 patients were treated in our outpatient clinics in November, including 122 children under the age of five.
The total cost of medical care and the purchase of additional protective materials was BOB 80,049.80 (€ 9,263.10). The most common diseases were: