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🇻🇪 Venezuela /Disasters & Emergencies

"Hospitals completely overwhelmed": Earthquake strains Venezuela's deteriorating health system

From El Nacional · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Venezuela's already strained healthcare system is overwhelmed by a major earthquake, with hospitals lacking basic supplies and staff.
  • Doctors report critical shortages of medicines and medical equipment, forcing patients to provide their own supplies.
  • The government claims to have activated a network of hospitals, but reports indicate centers are collapsing under the immense pressure.

Venezuela's fragile healthcare system is facing an unprecedented crisis following a powerful earthquake, with hospitals struggling to cope with the influx of injured and a severe lack of essential resources. Doctors describe a dire situation where even basic medical supplies are unavailable, forcing patients to procure their own.

We are not capable of providing medical care to our population on a normal day. Now, with this tragedy, the emergency is even greater and more difficult to face than in other countries.

— Dr. Pedro Javier FernándezA doctor with Médicos Unidos por Venezuela described the dire state of the healthcare system before and after the earthquake.

"We are not capable of providing medical care to our population on a normal day," said Dr. Pedro Javier Fernández of Médicos Unidos por Venezuela. "Now, with this tragedy, the emergency is even greater and more difficult to face than in other countries." He highlighted that hospitals lack supplies and medicines, exacerbating the challenge of treating hundreds of dead and thousands of injured.

There is a critical shortage of medicines and medical supplies. Health centers do not have the capacity to treat the enormous volume of people, and many of them are still trapped under the rubble.

— Dr. Franklin RodríguezDr. Franklin Rodríguez detailed the critical scarcity of resources in the most affected regions.

Reports from affected regions, such as La Guaira, indicate that hospitals are "completely overwhelmed." Dr. Franklin Rodríguez noted a critical scarcity of medicines and supplies, with medical centers unable to handle the volume of patients, many still trapped under rubble. Patients seeking care are reportedly asked to bring their own bandages, disinfectants, and even painkillers.

They don't have almost anything. One has to bring things. They asked me for bacitracin (antibiotics), Gerdex (disinfectant) for the stitches, gauze. They asked me to bring painkillers. I can't buy any of that, I have nothing.

— Jennifer HidalgoJennifer Hidalgo explained the situation at a health center where she was seeking care for her niece.

While the Ministry of Health announced the activation of eight public hospitals in the affected Greater Caracas area, alongside private clinics, the reality on the ground appears to be one of collapse. The earthquake has placed immense pressure on an already deteriorated system, turning a natural disaster into a compounding humanitarian emergency.

There are none.

— Common phrase in VenezuelaThis phrase, often used to describe the scarcity of goods, is now frequently heard regarding medical necessities.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Nacional in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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