The fact that Guayaquil does not have a single operational ambulance from the Ministry of Public Health that cooperates with the 911 emergency center, as revealed by the manager of the city’s public company for risk management and security control EP, Andrés Sandoval, is cause for alarm. Although the service is supplied with 26 fire brigade ambulances, this is not enough to cover international parameters nor does it meet the needs of the population.

“Not a single ambulance from the Ministry of Public Health is working in Guayaquil,” reveals the manager of Segura EP

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that there should be at least one ambulance for every 25,000 inhabitants in a city. With these data, Guayaquil would need 120 vehicles of this type, given its almost three million inhabitants.

This year, the Ministry of Health procured 186 ambulances under a contract with the United Nations Office for Project Services (Unops), but it is not known whether they all arrived as the previous government promised, which will be by the end of the year. year, to distribute them in different provinces and replace those that are in bad condition.

The offer for Guayaquil would be 17, according to Segura EP. The Ministry of Health assured on December 21 that in 2023, 9 ambulances were assigned to zone 8 (Guayaquil, Durán and Samborondón).

567 services were provided in 9 MSP ambulances that arrived in Guayaquil

There is an urgent need for new health authorities to address the need for ambulances for all of Ecuador. Those awaiting arrival due to the previous administration’s $26.4 million investment require monitoring and parallel analysis of the state and needs of each area of ​​the country in terms of medical equipment.

Health is a guaranteed right in Ecuador, according to the Constitution, just like life, and ambulances are gathered here, which are a tool to help people in times of accidents, attacks or in cases of injuries that require medical care. (OR)