PRESS RELEASE: Samaritan’s Purse Airlifts Emergency Field Hospital To The Bahamas; Adding Critical COVID-19 Capacity As Positive Cases Continue To Rise
Sydney, NSW, 16 October 2020—At the request of the Bahamian Prime Minister, Samaritan’s Purse has deployed an Emergency Field Hospital to Nassau after an increase in COVID-19 cases has overwhelmed the local healthcare system. With more than 2,000 active cases across the islands, hospitals have been inundated with patients suffering from the coronavirus. Princess Margaret Hospital in Nassau is full and they have shut down medical transfers from neighbouring islands. Samaritan’s Purse is coming alongside Bahamian healthcare workers, providing additional support as they continue the fight against the devastating COVID-19 virus.
Today, the international Christian relief organisation airlifted more than 14 tons of critical relief supplies – including the specially outfitted 28-bed field hospital and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – on its DC-8 aircraft. The cargo plane also transported a team of Samaritan’s Purse doctors, nurses and key staff members. In addition to providing added capacity, these medical personnel will partner with Nassau’s Princess Margaret Hospital and the Bahamian Ministry of Health to provide Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) trainings for national healthcare workers, many of whom have been infected by the virus – further exacerbating the country’s need for medical assistance.
“Hospital staff are overwhelmed as the number of coronavirus patients continues increasing in the Bahamas,” said Dan Stephens, Disaster Response Manager of Samaritan’s Purse Australia. “Our teams are ready to respond at a moment’s notice in Jesus’s Name; we want to alleviate the burden on this country and remind them that there is still hope.”
The response comes six months after Samaritan’s Purse simultaneously deployed two Emergency Field Hospitals to New York City and Cremona, Italy to treat COVID-19 in the epicentres of the virus at that time. Medical staff cared for more than 600 patients at the nearly identical 68-bed respiratory care units while reminding them that they were not alone or forgotten.
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This marks the organisation’s second Emergency Field Hospital deployment in the Bahamas. After Hurricane Dorian hit last year, Samaritan’s Purse opened a 40-bed field hospital on Grand Bahama and distributed life-saving supplies in the hardest-hit areas. Samaritan’s Purse established a country office in the Bahamas to meet ongoing needs that resulted from the storm and continues to distribute clean water and restore homes damaged by the hurricane.
Samaritan’s Purse Australia and New Zealand responds to physical and spiritual needs of individuals in crisis situations–especially in locations where few others are working. Led by President and CEO Franklin Graham, Samaritan’s Purse works in more than 100 countries to provide aid to victims of war, disease, disaster, poverty, famine and persecution. For more information, visit SamaritansPurse.org.au
