As the days go by, the news about the progress of COVID-19 are discouraging. Luckily, governments and citizens are taking the appropriate measures, so that it doesn’t get worse.
However, the case of Latin America is antagonistic to the situation in Europe and the USA. Latin America is the western region with the largest deficit in the health system.
Mexico has 1.4 beds for every 1,000 patients. Venezuela does not have the necessary medical supplies to take care of its patients and, many times, they find themselves with no running water nor electricity. Brazil has a shortage of medicines and supplies, and all the other factors that can be found in every corner of the health sector in Latin America.
With +2,400 confirmed cases of coronavirus, the growth of the virus shows to have increased 10 times in comparison to last week’s report. The first infection identified in Brazil, in late February, when a 61-year-old woman was returning from Italy to her country.
The virus appeared in the region, almost always following the same pattern; people who traveled to other places (Europe and Asia) where the ones to bring the bug with them. Members of the government, Instagram influencers, tourists and businessmen had positive results early in the outbreak. This supposes that the outbreak began in the upper class and has been expanding ever since.
Venezuela, Colombia, and Argentina were quick to order the entire population to stay indoors, until the sector of the outbreak could be located and controlled. While in countries like Mexico and Brazil, the quarantine hasn’t even started. Economic activities have not ceased and the contagion curve increases exponentially.
Doctors warn that once the virus have a chance to spread freely in the poorest sectors, it will be uncontrollable. Water scarcity will be the most pressing factor in this situation. The need to sanitize everything over and over again will be – clearly – omitted by the limitations of these sectors.
Private health can probably handle several dozen cases, but the public sector will be over-saturated without achieving results efficiently.