The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) warned on Tuesday that the expansion of the new coronavirus pandemic “is accelerating rapidly” in the Americas and asked the governments of the region to prepare with the same speed.
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“In just seven days, we have seen cases and deaths in our region double. The pandemic is accelerating rapidly, I urge governments to prepare and respond with the same speed,” the doctor explained in a telematic press conference. Carissa F. Etienne, director of this organization.
Etienne pointed out that until April 6 PAHO had counted 384,435 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 11,270 deaths from this disease across the continent.
In line with this, he noted that the number of cases will continue to increase and predicted that most countries will enter the worst phase of the pandemic next month, which he believes could lead to the health systems of many of these nations collapsing.
Etienne was particularly concerned about the lack of material in some countries and the consequences that this could have.
“Limited supplies of gloves, medical masks, respirators, goggles and gowns can cause a wave of preventable infections among health workers and can threaten our ability to cope with the pandemic,” he lamented.
Some infections that PAHO has tried to avoid by advising on the stock of medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE).
In this sense, Etienne explained that the leading institution has sent PPE to 35 countries and one territory, and has delivered coronavirus detection kits to 25 nations.
Among the countries that have received this aid are Ecuador and Venezuela, according to the director of PAHO’s Emergency Health Emergencies, Ciro Ugarte.
Ugarte explained that the organization has sent special help to the Ecuadorian city of Guayaquil so that it has the necessary protective equipment.
And is that Guayaquil, the second largest city in Ecuador, has been the scene in recent days of a dramatic situation due to the accumulation of corpses in houses, streets, morgues and funeral homes due to the large number of deaths from the pandemic.
On the other hand, Ugarte said that PAHO has provided Venezuela, a country that is going through a serious political and economic crisis, technical cooperation for the preparation of the COVID-19 national plan, as well as laboratory tests, 15,000 masks and other equipment. personal protection.
In addition, he stated that PAHO has sent an expert to that country to provide training in the diagnosis of the new coronavirus.
