Students and alumni of the School of Health Science took part in the virtual hackathon “MIT COVID-19 Challenge: Latin America vs COVID-19". Its purpose was to build solutions addressing the problems caused by the pandemic in Latin America.
Before the event, they received over 4,000 participant applications plus 900 mentor applications, and 150 collaborators and more than 50 organizing teams. 
For the event, 1,500 participants and 300 mentors from 73 countries were chosen. The hackathon formed international and multidisciplinary teams according to the interest and profile of each participant, who competed within one of 10 categories available (A-J).
Dr. Luisa Rivero Zambrano--intern physician in her social service for the Bachelor in Medicine and Surgery--and her team took part in the “Track D. Healthcare workforce well-being, management and training”, with the UNIDOSS project. It is a platform that aims at tackling the uneven distribution of human resources in the healthcare sector through the creation of a database to connect healthcare suppliers who are more suitable for a specific case, taking into account personal and professional information.
Dr. Rodolfo Garcia Rodriguez Arana--alumnus of the Bachelor in Medicine and Surgery (class of 2018) and of the Master in Healthcare Institutions Management (class of 2019)--and his team took part in the “Track C. Health systems asset coordination, distribution and conversion” with the COVending project. It was about digitizing, counting, and enabling intra-hospital distribution of personal protective equipment used by healthcare professionals to promote the rational and equitable use of consumables compromising health services in Latin America.
On the other hand, Dr. Diego Abelardo Álvarez Hernández--alumni of the Bachelor in Medicine and Surgery (class of 2017) and of the Master in Medical Science (class of 2019)--and his team took part in the “Track B. New ways to deliver care in a COVID-19 world” with the project UV-C Lights vs. COVID-19. It is about a protocol progressively integrating technology using UV-C light to decontaminate personal protective equipment, the air in the HVAC systems and surfaces in doctor’s offices and hospital rooms.
By the end of the event, the UNIDOSS project in Track D, and UV-C Lights vs. COVID-19 project in Track B won in their categories. The teams are currently working remotely, with mentors, institutions, and developers to implement them and tackle the load of this disease for the healthcare systems in Latin America.
The hackathon brought together people interested in helping in the fight against COVID-19 in the region. It is the first series focused on Latin America, and it is being conducted in three languages: English, Spanish, and Portuguese. 
This 48-hour virtual activity, hosted by the MIT, will be focused in building solutions with a significant impact on the region in the following three to six months.

Participants expressed they feel proud of representing our dear Anahuac University in Mexico City.