Venezuela earthquakes strain fragile healthcare system as disease risks rise

Aid organisations warned that Venezuela’s weak healthcare system was nearing collapse. The strain followed two strong earthquakes almost a week earlier. Damaged hospitals were treating large numbers of injured people. Conditions were also worsening in disaster areas. Groups said these pressures were helping infectious diseases spread.

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Rescue teams from Venezuela and abroad were still searching for survivors. The government death toll had risen above 1,700. Bodies were still being recovered from debris. At the same time, agencies said a separate crisis was growing among survivors. Many people had lost homes and basic services.

Venezuela earthquakes healthcare system faces disease risks

United Nations agencies raised alarms about health risks for displaced people. Many had slept outdoors for days. Others stayed in crowded shelters with poor hygiene. Carlotta Wolf, a UN refugee agency spokesperson, said officials reported over 15,800 affected people. Wolf said this figure reflected the official displaced count. Wolf said the number would rise.

Wolf said many people suddenly without homes were sleeping in cars and parks. Wolf said there was not enough emergency shelter. Wolf also said the hardest-hit state, La Guaira, faced major food shortages. Aid groups linked hunger and poor shelter to higher health risks in camps and open areas.

At a Geneva media briefing on Tuesday, WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier warned of rising disease threats. Lindmeier said low vaccination rates raised the risk of measles. Lindmeier also cited waterborne illnesses. Lindmeier listed dengue, yellow fever and malaria as growing concerns after the earthquakes.

Venezuela earthquakes healthcare system under extreme hospital pressure

Lindmeier said Venezuela’s health sector had suffered decades of underinvestment. Lindmeier said years of economic crisis had weakened services further. Lindmeier said hospitals were now working beyond capacity due to trauma cases. The government said 38 hospitals nationwide were damaged or otherwise compromised by last week’s quakes.

WHO had assessed 21 of those facilities so far. Three were no longer operating, WHO said. Another six had damage, WHO said. The remaining hospitals were struggling with the patient surge. WHO said the strain grew because many specialist doctors were missing in the ruins. WHO cited officials responsible for maternity care in La Guaira.

"Findings reveal chaotic service delivery and patient flow, marked by overcrowding, growing surgical backlogs... and a breakdown in biosafety measures,\" Lindmeier said. Lindmeier added that the disruption had caused forensic and morgue services to collapse. Lindmeier also cited weak casualty registration as another problem.

Venezuela earthquakes healthcare system data shows gaps in missing counts

The government issued daily casualty updates. On Monday, officials reported 1,719 people killed and 5,000 injured. Experts said the figures were likely too low. Many people were still missing, experts said. They also said chances of finding survivors fell each day as time passed.

Authorities did not provide an official count of missing people. Damage to phone networks and other infrastructure complicated tracking. Informal efforts also struggled, aid groups said. A non-governmental digital database listed more than 50,000 people as missing. It was unclear how many of those people had been found.

With inputs from PTI