Healthcare Access is a worldwide problem: A story from Paraguay

I recently had a chat with Diana Richer who is already for more than 2 years working with our team of Everyone.org to help patients suffering from the rare disease of SMA to access the innovations they need. Diana was born and raised in Paraguay and has seen first hand how the local healthcare systems do not prioritise the wellbeing of patients.

She explained to me that their broken and outdated healthcare system coupled with a fragile political and economic climate are obstructing patients from accessing crucial life saving medicines that could potentially save their lives. And the global pandemic makes the situation even worse.

We both reflected on what a potential utopian healthcare system could look like. A system with a robust and stable infrastructure where patients can get the best personalised healthcare and physicians can work with the latest innovations without delays, without economical barriers and without bureaucratic hurdles.?

In our conversation, we also emphasized that global change cannot be achieved overnight. It is an arduous labour of love that takes a lot of courage and perseverance. We also realised that the road to a global transformation is by starting locally in our communities and healthcare systems. By pressuring decision makers, by coming up with innovative solutions to old problems and by prioritising the wellbeing of patients above all.?

Since we started Everyone.org, it has become increasingly clear that access to medicine is a worldwide challenge, it is a global problem that affects everyone disproportionately depending on where they live and who they are.?

Every day, patients from all over the world are denied access to medicines approved in neighboring countries but not on their own. Whereas they have the legal right to access them!?

Our focus for the next three years is to fortify our advocacy network and support more and more patients who need our help, from all around the world. By building an infrastructure to a new system, we will allow all pharma and health innovators to contribute and collaborate, and foster an arrangement where everyone works together while keeping the patient at the center. This will enable a win-win situation for all parties involved.

How can we as a global community continue to break down barriers locally? How can we think global but continue to act local? How can you make a change in your local community and contribute to a healthier world?

I’d love to discuss.?

Thanks for reading.?

-S