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After two weeks seriously admitted for coronavirus in the Puerta de Hierro Hospital (Madrid), after seeing things that no one should see (or better: that everyone should see); Carlos came out with seven kilos less and a lot of desire to thank more.
So what John F. Kennedy said was raised, you know: "Don't ask yourself what your country can do for you, ask yourself what you can do for your country."
And since he was discharged on March 18 , he started a campaign to raise funds to supply medical supplies; and the crowdfunding of 12,000 euros that was initially going to be to provide 1,200 masks and an ultrasound scanner at Puerta de Hierro was extended that day to 25,000 euros to try to get the same kit to October 12 ; and the snowball grew until it also reached the Fuenlabrada Hospital ; and then to Infanta Leonor ...
We bring here Carlos Llorente González -47 years old, dedicated to health management and married to an oncologist- because he has two peculiarities.
Not only has he fulfilled that mandate of JFK on the day of his investiture (at the time of writing these lines, he has already collected 36,000 of the 39,000 euros that are equivalent to 7,200 masks and two ultrasound scanners that are already on the way ). But it also responds to a statistic. This is the story of infinite gratitude of a specific patient: he was number 70 in the Community of Madrid.
Although his friends doubt this figure, he sarcastically confesses.
-Cast?
- There is some horny one that says to me that surely they have been confused, that I establish that I am patient 69. But no.
We laugh. Repeatedly. And it is okay to do it in spite of the half-thousand deaths because, by laughing, up to four hormones are activated that are capable of reducing this daily stress, lowering the heart rate, reducing that anxiety that he had and increasing productivity.
Yours is beyond question.
He decided that he would do something during those "horrible eight days" when he saw himself die. There are two key moments he refers to between panic and tenderness.
One is when Dr. Rosa Malo de Molina told him: «Listen Carlos, you have to do two things: be upbeat and eat… Do them. Because I don't want to see you in the ICU ».
I had a 39 fever, I looked at my right arm and saw the hand of a nurse. He was caressing me in silence
Carlos LlorenteThe other is when someone without a name or voice addressed him: “I had a 39.5 fever, I looked at my right arm and saw the hand of a nurse with a blue glove. He caressed me for a long time in silence. That gave me a lot of encouragement ... She was tall, I think blonde. I don't know who that nurse was. But I keep looking for it ».
The definitive push was a thing of Rafa Garrido, his friend from school, who called Carlos a week after returning home to find out about his state of health and to discuss the idea with him.
"We did not launch the campaign until we had the material approved by the suppliers," he says. " The first thing we did was ask pulmonologists , like the one asking about a gift you would like to have: 'What do you need?' And they: 'Masks ... And ... ultrasound scanners'. I did not understand why ultrasound scanners. And they explained to me that the portable X-ray machines used to make the plates do not give too much quality. "
We spoke with Javier Sayas , a pulmonologist on October 12 and head of the hospital's mechanical ventilation unit.
«Everything is made of bonnet. It is not only the number of masks, it is the difficulty of accessing them at this time, "he admits. «Then there is the portable ultrasound machine that they are going to send us. There are many occasions when the lung is better seen with this device than with a chest x-ray. And the advantage is that you can use it yourself at the foot of the bed. Even on a home trip.
The two ultrasounds are of Canadian origin and the 7,200 masks come from China . Only in the first two hours of collection, 11,000 euros were achieved. The material will begin to be available in approximately one week. Contributions can be made on the website www.donacionescovid.com , where hospital acceptance letters are posted and the entire process is absolutely documented.
Achieving what was promised has been difficult even for someone dedicated to health management such as Carlos. As well as obtaining a shipment of bourbon in full dry law.
It should be noted the rise in price of masks, 250% more expensive than usual
"On the one hand, there is the uncertainty of the delivery deadline, due to possible problems at customs, and on the other hand, there is the rise in the price of masks, 250% more expensive than usual."
Of all that he lived, Carlos Llorente is grateful for the graces that he has not been able to give. No matter how much material you deliver.
«My fear is that someday I will come across one of those nurses who helped me so much. The blonde, the brunette, Ana, Irene, the cleaning lady who said to me: 'You already have less, fight a little more' ... And, since I don't know their faces, pass by without saying anything or recognizing what what are they doing".
Otherwise, at home, life goes on with other newly minted martianadas.
Her 12-year-old son has learned to make spaghetti. Her daughter of 10 is clearing the table. One sweeps. The other one is vacuuming. In a kind of good contagion.
Sometimes they approach him when he is in front of the computer and ask him: "Dad, how much have you already collected?" He tells them what the word thank you adds up to.
" We talked about the importance of giving thanks, helping ... A nurse told me that when she got home, she would cry," Carlos tells us.
«I ask the nurses to continue crying, but with joy for the good they are doing. They do not know the strength they give, the good they do, when in addition to doing their job, they take a hand and caress it ».
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
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