Elective surgeries and procedures suspended, water supply by tanker trucks, difficulty in receiving oxygen and food, employees sleeping at work because their homes are underwater.
This is the scenario in hospitals in Rio Grande do Sul, which are still tallying the losses caused by heavy rains that have been hitting the region over the past week. There are at least 400,000 points without electricity and 500,000 without water in the state.
According to the state health department, 140 health services, including hospitals and other units, have been affected by the floods, which will require a major reconstruction and re-equipping project for the lost equipment.
"Some [places] are already restarting, but many have suffered significant losses," says Bruno Naundorf, director of the audit department of the department and part of the state's crisis team.
In a meeting with Minister Nísia Trindade (Health) and the State Secretary of Health, Arita Bergmann, health entities and leaders requested an emergency funding equivalent to six months of full billing for hospitals in Rio Grande do Sul that work with the SUS (Unified Health System) –the amount is not yet defined.