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Ecuador Earthquake: Emergency Field Hospital Deployment

June 29, 2016 By David Hennesse

How Samaritan’s Purse Transformed an Empty Field into a Hospital

In the wake of a disaster, the speed of a response often means the difference between life and death. The Samaritan’s Purse Disaster Assistance Response Team maintains a constant state of readiness so that when disasters strike, we can immediately mobilize to bring life-saving care and supplies to those in need.

For more than 10 years, Samaritan’s Purse has envisioned expanding its medical response capacity to include a mobile emergency field hospital, and for the past three years, we have actively been working to make this dream a reality.

On April 16, 2016, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the northern coast of Ecuador and collapsed a main referral hospital in Chone. Samaritan’s Purse identified a gap in the medical infrastructure that our field hospital could help fill to meet the medical needs of people in need of trauma care. Because we had spent years preparing for a medical response like this, we were able to respond quickly and get the field hospital, medical staff, and relief teams on the ground in Ecuador four days after the earthquake.

Ecuador Field Hospital Set Up
The set-up team, doctors, nurses, and the Ecuadorian Army pitch in to get the hospital running within 11 hours.

Upon arrival in Chone, the set-up crew began to unpack the unit and build the hospital. While the team had done mock set-ups of the field hospital for training purposes, this was the first time it was assembled with patients waiting for care. Under the direction of Kenny Adcock, the readiness manager of the hospital, everyone pitched in to help—doctors, nurses, and the Ecuadorian army all worked diligently alongside the set-up team, understanding the dire situation at hand.

In just under 11 hours, an empty field was transformed into a fully functioning hospital, complete with an emergency room, operating room, in-patient beds, and a pharmacy. Doctors and nurses rearranged travel plans, canceled vacations, and left home with less than 24 hours’ notice in order to make this response a reality. They did this knowing that the hours would be long, the conditions would be challenging, and the sleep would be minimal. Despite this, Judith Hoover, a nurse at the field hospital, said, “It’s the most rewarding thing you can do.”

During the past two months, medical staff treated 1,285 patients and performed 287 surgeries. They treated severe fractures, appendicitis, pressure wounds, third-degree burns, and other serious medical conditions.

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Filed Under: Disaster Medicine Tagged With: Ecuador Earthquake

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Samaritan’s Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan’s Purse has helped meet needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God’s love through His Son, Jesus Christ. The organization serves the church worldwide to promote the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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