Strengthening musculoskeletal care for people with bleeding disorders
The fourth NNHF project in Argentina centred initially on training in the province of Salta in Argentina, while going on to build a national network across the country. It had a targeted focus on musculoskeletal care and occupational therapy.
Establishing MSK care in the region of Salta
At the project start, musculoskeletal (MSK) care was mainly centred in Buenos Aires. This meant limited access for people with haemophilia from the provinces of Argentina like Salta. In a vast country like Argentina, there was a clear need to strengthen musculoskeletal care and occupational therapy across the country.
Training across borders
Back in 2018, the project had resulted in the construction of a rehabilitation pool and associated exercise equipment at the Haemophilia Foundation of Salta. This had enabled the implementation of hydrotherapy for people with haemophilia from the province, thus improving preventive and rehabilitative care. Later that year, a first national musculoskeletal training session was held there to share the experience with professionals from other provinces.
In June 2019, a second training session took place over the course of three days. It comprised a day of aquatic rehabilitation, with participation of nine kinesiologists, and two days of occupational therapy with participants not only from several provinces of Argentina and Bolivia but also with international speakers from Mexico, Brazil and Chile. As part of the training, a musculoskeletal assessment of three patients took place to emphasise the key evaluation points.
“What made the June event particularly important was the creation of a network of professionals both within Argentina and internationally”, concluded Maria Sol Cruz, president of the Haemophilia Foundation of Salta.
“Speakers from across Latin America could share knowledge, based on their own experiences in providing musculoskeletal care to people with bleeding disorders.”
More locally, the Salta team also developed protocols for the assessment of joint health and provided rehabilitation sessions in the physiotherapy room and rehabilitation pool for people with bleeding disorders.
Finally, an additional session was organised in November 2019 with two days of radiosynoviorthesis training in Salta provided by Brazilian expert Sylvia Thomas.
