She carries with her the image of little Jennifer reaching out for shelter. And also the little voice that calls out for her presence: “Mom, stay home.” It hurts too much not to be able to please her, and a whirlwind of emotions comes over her every morning, right on the way to the Provincial Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology and Microbiology.
Las Tunas, Cuba.- She crosses the threshold of the door where, for several weeks, she has been staying most of the time. It is 6:30 am and as she climbs the stairs of the laboratory she thinks then, that perhaps today she can find her daughter awake, but she is not sure. Every day she has her own routines and it is too early to see a possible return, which may even extend into the early hours of the morning.
She takes the usual route and from one moment to the next she rediscovers herself immersed in samples and statistics. And her baby stays there, in her heart, now she must put her knowledge to work for many. She is only 30 years old and she assumes the direction of the network of Microbiology laboratories in the province, with impeccable performance, mainly now that the Covid-19 affects the nation. Her name is Idianis Lluch Silva.
“It is not an easy task; the people I lead have more experience, but I have earned respect”, she says. Now everything is very complex because the current epidemiological situation requires me to stay here longer, supervising the details.
“Of course this requires a greater effort on a personal level. Thanks to my mother-in-law, I have been able to fulfill this vital mission. Imagine, I leave the house and leave the child asleep; I give her a kiss and come here. I barely see her, but when I can get there at 8:00 at night, she tells me: ‘Dirty Mama,’ and she doesn't come near me until I take a bath.”
She tells me that Jennifer has had to learn to say hello with her elbow. And although she's too young to understand certain explanations, the family keeps telling her how important her mommy's job is. “It's not easy, she's two years old, but I think that the health of many depends on me; that's why I'm here to do my duty," she says, and she throws out that sensitivity that characterizes her.
Luckily, Idianis is in good company in life. Her husband and faithful companion is one of those anonymous people who spread solidarity. Karel Ramírez, from his responsibility as head of Services of the center, guarantees the logistics to those in the laboratories who challenge the SARS-CoV-2; and his function does not understand schedules either. They have each other and are aware that the sacrifice is also for that little girl they leave to the good care of their grandmother.
“The whole team is well trained and at the moment 15 lab technicians are packing the samples of the nasopharyngeal exudate, which are sent to the reference laboratory in Santiago de Cuba. We organize groups to guarantee greater quality in what we do. We take extreme protective measures to avoid contagion”, she says.
