Felix Hernandez, Director General of the El Ney Arias Lora trauma hospital, said on Friday 7 June that road traffic accidents were the biggest epidemic in the Dominican Republic.
He said that between 170 and 190 patients arrived at the hospital emergency department every day, and more at the weekend, and of these 70% were due to road traffic accidents. He went on to say that they result in more deaths than all other illnesses combined and that there had to be a campaign to reduce the number of deaths, especially among young people.
Felix Hernandez said that the cost involved was a major headache for the hospitals, as when 20 patients arrived needing to have their bones pinned or prostheses, with no insurance cover, the only option was to send them home to get worse, or to leave them in hospital for a week or two, waiting for them to raise the money, turning the hospitals into warehouses of sick people.
However the other option was for the hospital to buy the pins, so that the beds could be freed up more quickly, as his hospital had an average four-day stay, less than international standards.
www.eldia.com.do/nacionales/2013/6/7/116074/Director-Hospital-Ney-Arias-Lora-advierte-accidentes-de-transito-son-una