Hospital crisis tarnishes Doctor’s Day in Venezuela

Doctor's Day in Venezuela, El Nacional
The president of the Medical Federation of Venezuela, Douglas León Natera. Photo: EFE/MIGUEL GUTIERREZ

The Venezuelan Medical Federation (FMV) affirmed this Thursday that the crisis that the public health system is experiencing “tarnishes the acts on the occasion” of the doctor’s daywhich is commemorated in the country in honor of the birth of surgeon José María Vargas, who was also president of Venezuela between 1835 and 1836.

“Getting sick in Venezuela or suffering from a chronic pathology implies a high risk of facing death, because in public hospitals there is no medicine, nor do people have thousands of dollars to pay for a private clinic,” he said. at a press conference Douglas León Natera, president of the FMV.

He indicated that the situation of the hospital network, made up of 301 health centers, presents a technical closure of more than 80% due to the abandonment of its facilities, lack of maintenance, lack of medical equipment, work tools, surveillance, electricity, water and elevators, among other needs.

“In public hospitals there are no medicines, no food for the sick, no stretchers, and every day there are fewer staff due to miserable salaries and many professionals have emigrated,” León denounced.

Nor “they have cleaning materials, there are no elevators or ambulances, they are dark facilities due to lack of internal lighting (…) there is also no linen, kitchen or food for the sick; the beds are useless. A terrifying situation,” he added.

“In the presence of the holocaust of health”

León also asserted that the country is “in the presence of a health holocaust, because the health crisis situation has not changed for many years, and the Nicolás Maduro regime is not interested in the health of the people.”

He pointed out that health professionals work “in conditions that violate their labor rights because there are no biosafety measures in hospitals and there is no social security for their workers.”

He regretted that due to the deterioration of the health care network, Venezuela presents in the medical union “a very high morbidity and mortality from covid-19, with the figure of 633 deaths.”

According to the government, which believes that the health system responds to the needs of citizens, the shortcomings that can be detected are due to the sanctions that the United States and other nations apply to the country and prevent a greater budget from being invested in all sectors, including the sanitary.

Independent journalism needs the support of its readers to continue and ensure that the uncomfortable news they don’t want you to read remains within your reach. Today, with your support, we will continue to work hard for censorship-free journalism!

Leave a Replay