A month later he was transferred to the "Cárcel Modelo" (Model Prison) in Caracas, and was released shortly after that, beginning an exile of five years in Argentina, Chile and the United States. During his stay in Buenos Aires and Santiago de Chile, he undertook postgraduate study in Pediatrics. He resided in Santiago from 1953 and worked at Roberto del Río Hospital. In addition, he struck up friendships with prominent figures in local politics, such as the Christian Democrat Eduardo Frei Montalva and the democratic-socialist leader Salvador Allende.