For three days, the institution deployed a comprehensive health mission in San Lorenzo, which included ophthalmological, dental, optometry and delivery of inclusive tools.

Guayaquil, October 2026.- Bringing specialized medical care to where geographical and social conditions make it difficult to access health services was the objective of a new mission of the Junta de Beneficencia de Guayaquil in Esmeraldas. For three days, the institution performed free pterygium and cataract surgeries, intervention in dentistry, optometry and care for people with disabilities, in San Lorenzo and hard-to-reach communities in the northern part of the country.

The intervention focused on a territory characterized by the dispersion of its population, conditions of social vulnerability and geographical barriers to access essential services. As part of the mission, teams from the Junta de Beneficencia de Guayaquil also arrived in Palma Real, Tambillo and Pampanal de Bolívar, island communities to which access is mainly by river.

For ophthalmological interventions, a portable operating room was installed in a health facility of the Ecuadorian Navy, with two surgical posts that allowed 67 pterygium surgeries to be performed in just three days. Previously, 84 ophthalmological evaluations were carried out to identify patients who required intervention. The deployment went beyond surgical care. During the mission, dental care was provided to 429 patients, 133 reading glasses were delivered and 25 people received inclusive tools, expanding the scope of the day to other needs identified directly in the territory.

The mission also required a significant human and logistical deployment. About 50 people, including health professionals from the hospitals of the Junta de Beneficencia, support staff, volunteers and drivers, participated in the operation. This intervention is in addition to the ophthalmological missions carried out in different provinces of Ecuador to bring specialized care to populations that face greater economic or geographical barriers. During 2025, the institution performed more than 18,000 free surgeries, mainly aimed at people in vulnerable situations.

With the interventions carried out in three days and the comprehensive deployment of services in the territory, the Junta de Beneficencia de Guayaquil reaffirms its purpose of bringing resolute medical capacity to places where needs exist, but access to specialized care remains limited.