the health post Family Doctor of Vila Ipiranga Vilma Espin, in Fonseca, in Niterói, was the subject of a complaint this Thursday (29). According to an official, the rains made the unit’s infrastructure problems even more visible.
Managed by the Niterói State Health Foundation (FeSaúde), the unit located on Rua Tenente Osório is used for medical consultations and as a vaccination post. There are more than 20 employees, divided into five teams.
With two floors, the unit has no handrail on stairs used by professionals and patients. Pictures show leaks, infiltrations and steps with water puddles.
“Since we entered, we have witnessed a calamity. People are abandoned,” she says. “Not long ago, a lady fell down the stairs.”
Gutters at the health unit in Niterói — Photo: Personal archive
This Thursday, the situation was no different: with the rains, offices and the stairs were flooded.
“It gets all the stairs, the offices, the workplaces wet, it hits the lamp, it can cause a short, we can end up falling and an accident at work and it seems that they are not worrying about our situation”, he defines.
According to the official, complaints have already been forwarded to the coordination and nothing has been done so far.
Flooded floor in a health unit in Niterói — Photo: Personal archive
In a statement, the Niterói City Hall said that the renovation of the unit is scheduled to begin in 2022 and that, in the meantime, the site has already started to receive maintenance repairs.
The Municipal Health Secretary of Niterói informs that the renovation of the Vila Ipiranga Family Medical Program unit is foreseen in the Niterói 450-year Plan and should begin in 2022.
The Niterói 450 Plan is expected to invest approximately R$ 260 million in renovations, expansions and construction of units, and another R$ 40 million for the renovation of equipment and furniture in all health units. In all, there will be 30 modules of the Family Doctor Program that will receive works.
While waiting for the renovation works to begin, the Vila Ipiranga module has already started to receive maintenance repairs.
Stairs with puddles of water at a health center in Niterói — Photo: Personal archive