Protagonismo de acadêmicos da saúde na produção de equipamentos de proteção individual durante a pandemia da COVID-19: relato de experiência

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic caused one of the biggest health crises of the 21st century. In the first half of 2020, the world experienced a lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). In Acre, students from the Federal University of Acre mobilized and created the Episcovid-19 project. The aim of this work is to describe the production of PPE, distribution in health units, as well as the motivation of those involved in the process. This is a qualitative and quantitative study of the type of experience report carried out through semi-structured interviews. In 6 months, more than 120,000 PPE, including aprons, clips and face shields, were produced and distributed in various health units in Acre, covering several frontline health professionals and municipalities in the state. The EPISCOVID-19 project surpassed all the initially planned goals, which were 5,000 pieces of equipment, producing more than 125,000 PPE. The importance of the social responsibility of public universities in Brazil is highlighted, which contributed in different ways to society during the COVID-19 Pandemic, mainly through the University Extension axis, having a significant role in articulation with civil society entities in the fight and SARS-CoV-2 prevention.