DISASTER: Rio’s Olympic Hospitals Unable to Take New Patients

The five hospitals recommended by Rio de Janeiro for Olympic tourists are so full that some have been forced to leave patients on gurneys in hallways, according to a report from the local medical council.

Current conditions “don’t allow for accommodation of new patients,” the state’s medical council, known by its acronym Cremerj, said in a report that was vehemently rejected by Rio’s health secretariat. “There are a lot of patients admitted in improvised ways, in hallways, on gurneys and chairs, due to the lack of hospital beds and inadequate structure.”

Health has been a concern for Olympic tourists due to the Zika virus borne by mosquitoes, which are less prevalent in Brazil’s winter months of mid-June through mid-September. Hospitals’ low capacity to handle emergencies may be of greater concern. With its finances in tatters, the state of Rio de Janeiro has delayed salaries to hospital personnel, and there has been a shortage of basic medical supplies. Its fiscal crisis was so acute that the city of Rio, which enjoys more financial stability, took control of two state-run hospitals this year.

Cremerj found overcrowding in all the hospital emergency rooms it inspected, according to the report. – READ MORE