San Pedro doctors warn of the country’s worst health crisis

Doctors in Paraguay’s San Pedro department say the country is heading toward its worst health crisis as more than 100 specialists resign from public hospitals.

Health workers from several hospitals warned national authorities that the departures could create serious problems when patients need referral to specialist facilities in Asunción and Central. Those hospitals include the Hospital de Trauma, Acosta Ñu Pediatric Hospital, the National Hospital of Itauguá and the National Cancer Institute.

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The health system in our country is heading toward the worst health crisis of all time.

Dr Joaquín Silva, a doctor at Santaní Hospital and a union leader, said the health system did not have enough medical staff to fill the positions left vacant by the resignations. “Unfortunately, the national authorities are not grasping the problem the doctors’ resignations are already causing,” he said. “If there are no specialists at the Hospital de Trauma, Acosta Ñu and other referral centers, why are we going to send patients there? We do not know what will happen to seriously ill patients from now on.”

Large numbers of older people and children were waiting for care at Santaní Hospital. Hospital director Dr Zulma Cabrera said services in the areas disrupted during a five-day strike had returned to normal, and emergency care had not been affected. She said no serious patient had required transfer to Asunción by Monday and that the hospital was managing with its available medical team. Cabrera also said Santaní was not linked to the specialists who resigned from the Health Ministry, most of whom worked in Asunción and nearby areas.

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Unfortunately, the national authorities are not grasping the problem the doctors’ resignations are already causing. If there are no specialists at the Hospital de Trauma, Acosta Ñu and other referral centers, why are we going to send patients there? We do not know what will happen to seriously ill patients from now on.