The Teletón Chiriquí 2026 project kicked off on March 14 at the David International Fair with the goal of raising $503,475 to equip and remodel the Burns Unit of the José Domingo de Obaldía Maternal-Infant Hospital. The director of the unit, Alfredo Moltó, stated that childhood burns are a public health problem in the region. The current infrastructure is insufficient: dressings are performed in regular showers instead of integrated therapeutic baths, there are no individual climate-controlled cubicles, specialized beds, or enough vital sign monitors. The president of Teletón 2026, Giacomo Tamburrelli, detailed the project's goals: hospital beds with monitoring towers, an integrated therapeutic bath system, climate-controlled cubicles, and a recovery bed with an Air Fluidized Support System (soda lime pearls), which accelerates healing, reduces infections, pain, and immobilization, and prevents skin graft loss. "It is devastating to see a minor, a victim of burns that can cost them their life; this project will raise the standard of care throughout the west, democratizing local solutions," he emphasized. Meanwhile, Danilo Pinto Muñoz, president of the Activo 20-30 Club, added that this provincial Teletón brings local heroes with medical treatments, therapies, and educational prevention programs. "More than an event that unites companies, volunteers, media, medical staff, and the community, it is an act of love that transforms lives and brings hope".
