The San Juan de Dios General Hospital faces problems of shortages of medicines, medical equipment and supplies, a situation that authorities attribute to the increase in patient demand and delays in the procurement processes.
As indicated by the authorities of the healthcare center this Thursday, June 11, the Emergency area went from treating an average of 70 patients per day to receiving up to 200 people each day, which has generated additional pressure on hospital resources.
Currently, the hospital would be 70% supplied; However, the 30% of missing resources correspond to those with the highest consumption.
Given the shortage, the hospital management assured that it makes direct purchases to supply the most critical services, but recognized that the available budget may not be enough to cover all needs for the rest of the year.
Among the medications reported missing are broad-spectrum antibiotics, such as piperacillin/tazobactam, cefepime, and ceftazidime-avibactam, as well as commonly used drugs, including omeprazole, esomeprazole, furosemide, potassium chloride, enalapril, amlodipine, atorvastatin, and dipyrone.
In addition, the hospital faces shortages of medical supplies and equipment, including binasal cannulas, disposable masks, syringes for blood gases, traps for orotracheal aspirates, prescriptions for requesting medications in the pharmacy, equipment for plasmapheresis, electroencephalograms, and dual-chamber pacemakers.
The authorities indicated that they continue to take steps to acquire the missing products and guarantee patient care, including through the loan of supplies from other hospitals.
According to data from the San Juan de Dios General Hospital, in 24 hours they receive about 400 patients in the Adult Emergency and about 300 in the Pediatrics, while bedridden is 1,200 patients.
Marvin Arévalo, deputy medical director, indicated that since 2025 there has been an increase in patients. He added that the purchasing processes are underway, but the number of patients has caused a greater consumption of antibiotics, medical-surgical supplies and other resources.
“I can mention that, regarding medicines, we have 70% availability; that is, we are not bad,” he stated.
He added that there are quoting and bidding processes, and that this allows them to maintain an adequate level of resources. According to Arévalo, in medical-surgical material they have 88% availability.
The hospital authorities reiterated that they work to maintain patient care, since all acquisitions must comply with administrative processes.
Iracema Zamora, financial administrative manager, indicated that they have made 885 direct purchases for the entire hospital, specifically medications.
He added that they have set up quotation and bidding events, as well as 156 specific delivery schedules for medicines.
He indicated that they receive deliveries, normally, every two months to maintain availability and supply capacity, although the process of some tenders can last up to 11 months.
He stated that they try to set up events for 18 and 24 months in order to have greater coverage, since demand is constantly increasing.
“It is a fact that we need a budget expansion,” he added.
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