The main theme of the closing table was the relationships between science and politics in times of COVID-19.
The decisions that have been made
Lima expressed that, “Since the pandemic and the declaration of a health emergency, the national government, and every provincial government, has faced a practically unprecedented situation and had to rely on science to make very important decisions. In Salto’s case, one of these decisions was the closure of customer service offices, The restructuring of services provided to citizens, the restriction of public transportation to reduce mobility, the closure of thermal centers, the closure of neighborhood fairs, but also measures to support the vulnerable sectors most exposed to the health emergency.
Coordinated and joint measures
The mayor emphasized that collaborative work has been created between the county government and the department’s reference institutions, and a very strong synergy with the academic sector, strengthening relations with the University of the Republic. In turn, he valued “supporting the work of the Virology Laboratory at the Salto Headquarters at the University of the Republic, which has begun processing diagnostic tests for Covid-19. Coordination between Intendancy and Asse, with Cecoed as a hinge tool between all departmental level reference institutions to contain the spread of infection. The important task that was undertaken was health monitoring at the border crossing and at the center located at the northern tip of the Dayman Bridge.
lessons learned
The mayor stressed “the joint work between the public and private sectors to establish a scientifically based protocol approved by the Ministry of Public Health that allowed the re-opening of the thermal centers on July 15, 2020. The installation of vaccinations and mobile vaccinations. Inside, with logistical support from Intendancy, in order to accelerate the vaccination campaign “. “From our role as ministerial government, we have some lessons learned, of course, the importance of teamwork and synergies and the results we can achieve if we work together. Therefore, a healthy two-way relationship between science and politics is fundamental. We must add then, that if we ask science and academia to Being in the country’s most difficult moments and giving answers, then we cannot withdraw resources.He concluded that the University of the Republic should be decisively supported and the resources allocated to the public research system should be improved.
