People waiting on the floor of the Emergency Units. The request for oxygen tanks, medicines and, above all, a bed in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) take over social networks. Hospitals in Ecuador exceeded their capacity. Nationwide, 395 patients in serious health are waiting to enter intensive care.
This was reported on April 14, 2021 by the president of the national Emergency Operations Committee (COE), Juan Zapata, about the alarming figures that have been registered, especially since this past weekend.
Nationwide, he said there are 395 people waiting for an ICU. In Guayaquil, for example, there are 80 people and, in Quito, it rose to 102.
The increase in hospitalized patients has occurred steadily since last March 25, going from 1,500 daily patients, between stable and serious, to more than 1,700 in the last six days.
Zapata confirmed that many hospitals nationwide are working at 150% of their capacity. Medical unions have warned about this saturation and urgently request a respite from the hospital system.
The national COE awaits a meeting with the Constitutional Court (CC) to allow new states of exception focused on the 11 most affected provinces. Today the invitation was sent and they expect a response as soon as possible.
When asked if the Government manages a Plan B, in case the CC does not respond, Martínez was clear: “Plan B is the citizens, each of us is”.
The death rate has also increased in recent days. Juan Zapata mentioned that, in October 2020, there were 144 deaths in Guayaquil, as of March 2021 it rose to 503 and, in the first days of April, 354 deaths were registered.
While Quito had an excess mortality of 66% last week and, this week there is a record of 85%.
The mayor of Guayaquil, Cynthia Viteri, said that there are an average of 33 deaths per day, since last weekend due to COVID-19.
Until this April 14, 2021, the country registers 350,539 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 17,400 deaths.
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