Last Monday, August 7th, the Santa María de Guía City Council inaugurated ten panels on the History of Healthcare in Guía in various streets of its historic center. This urban exhibition will remain open to the public until the end of next month, October.
This year's theme, epidemics and a tribute to healthcare professionals, arose from everything that happened in recent months with the Covid-19 epidemic. One of its panels includes a summary of the history of apothecaries and pharmacies in the municipality, and of course, featuring their professional protagonists, from the first, Cipriano Arribas (1857), to more contemporary residents of Guía like the current president of our College, Juan Ramón Santana Ayala, or its secretary, Fernando Guerra Domínguez.
The texts and documentation for the panels were created by Sergio Aguiar and the design is by José Luis Jiménez. The limitations of the current pandemic have forced the cancellation of the traditional historical tours held each year and their replacement with a video that will be broadcast on local television channels and social media. Additionally, each panel has a QR code that allows access to its explanation.
The health crisis we have been immersed in since last March has prompted the city council to tell the story of the city's healthcare, starting with an account of the three epidemics suffered in the municipality in the 19th and 20th centuries (yellow fever, cholera morbus, and Spanish flu), and continuing with a tribute to all healthcare professionals, from the first doctors and practitioners, apothecaries and pharmacies, the San Roque Hospital, the Red Cross, the maternity ward, from the Doctor's House to the Health Center or veterinarians.
Those interested in the tour of Santa María de Guía's healthcare facilities can do so from Marqués del Muni street to Plaza Grande, continuing along Pérez Galdós street and up to Plaza de San Roque, on a walk that can be followed through Plazoleta Tío Ortega and concluded on Alcalde Juan García street.
