There's a hospital ship waiting for sick Puerto Ricans -- but no one knows how to get on it

There's a hospital ship waiting for sick Puerto Ricans -- but no one knows how to get on it

There's a hospital ship waiting for sick Puerto Ricans -- but no one knows how to get on it
By Leyla Santiago and Mallory Simon, CNN

Updated 7:37 PM ET, Tue October 17, 2017
puerto rico floating hospital santiago dnt lead_00021304

Floating hospital sits empty near Puerto Rico 02:39
Story highlights
Floating hospital was deployed to Puerto Rico to take pressure off local hospitals
But most of its beds are still empty amid confusion over how to transfer patients
San Juan, Puerto Rico (CNN)Sammy Rolon is living in a makeshift clinic set up at a school. He has cerebral palsy and epilepsy and is bedridden. He's waiting for surgery that was scheduled before Hurricane Maria smashed into Puerto Rico. Now, he can't even get the oxygen he needs.

There is help available for the 18-year-old -- right offshore. A floating state-of-the-art hospital, the USNS Comfort, could provide critical care, his doctor says.
But nobody knows how to get him there. And Sammy is not alone.

Clinics that are overwhelmed with patients and staff say they don't even know how to begin sending cases to the ship. Doctors say there's a rumor that patients have to be admitted to a central hospital before they can be transferred to the Comfort.
Only 33 of the 250 beds on the Comfort -- 13% -- are being used, nearly two weeks after the ship arrived.

Not only did it take weeks for the USNS Comfort to make it to Puerto Rico, now that she is there she is hardly being used.

I do not want this to be a Trump bashing thread but we wanted government to operate more efficiently, that is why a business mogul was elected. The US government response to Puerto Rico has been anything but efficient. It has been a mess. Private relief groups have led the way, while politics and bureaucracy has stalled relief efforts.

It also needs to be noted that the Jones Act exenption was not extended to Puerto Rico. It appears the federal government is either too incompetent to handle Puerto Rico relief efforts or just does not seem to care.

a reply to: jrod

Or they are encountering unprecedented resistance from the leaders of PR.

It also needs to be noted that the Jones Act wad not extended to Puerto Rico. It appears the federal government is either too incompetent to handle Puerto Rico relief efforts or just does not seem to care.

.

originally posted by: jrod
There's a hospital ship waiting for sick Puerto Ricans -- but no one knows how to get on it

Not only did it take weeks for the USNS Comfort to make it to Puerto Rico, now that she is there she is hardly being used.

I do not want this to be a Trump bashing thread but we wanted government to operate more efficiently, that is why a business mogul was elected.

Why would it be a Trump bashing thread? To me this sounds like the fault lies with Puerto Rican authorities - it sounds like no one is in command down there!

a reply to: seasonal

No one knows how to get there, thanks to poor management of the masters of the ship....which the president is on the top of that chain.

Why do you blame the Puerto Rican people. They handled a storm that was much stronger than Katrina much better than the city of New Orleans did. However they could use and in some cases need help with the aftermath.

Do you know who let the Jones Act exemption to expire for Puerto Rico?(hint....not the Puerto Rican government)

a reply to: jrod

Take a breath and re-read.

Or they are encountering unprecedented resistance from the leaders of PR.

There's a hospital ship waiting for sick Puerto Ricans -- but no one knows how to get on it

Surely there are still some small boats that are operable. Can't they just go off shore in them with patients aboard?

It seems so obvious....

a reply to: seasonal

Show me proof of your claim! (From a legitimate source)

I get it, you will defend Trump's response to PR to the end.

But why not fact check bogus claims and maybe listen to what people who are actually deep in Puerto Rico have to say instead of believing anything that strokes your confirmation bias.

a reply to: jrod

Give me an approved list of your approved legitimate sources and I will get to work.

originally posted by: jrod
a reply to: seasonal

No one knows how to get there, thanks to poor management of the masters of the ship....which the president is on the top of that chain.

Why do you blame the Puerto Rican people. They handled a storm that was much stronger than Katrina much better than the city of New Orleans did. However they could use and in some cases need help with the aftermath.

It does not sound as if it is really about how to physically getting aboard the ship - it sound like a management problem in Puerto Rico's hospitals. If doctors and other personnel really do not know how the Puerto Rican health authorities wants the patients to be admitted but have to rely on rumors, well, then there is something that is not working for them.

There is nothing in the linked article to suggest that it is poor management of 'the masters of the ship' that is to blame. Quite contrarily it is laid out as a Puorto Rican management problem:

Puerto Rico's Department of Health has to decide which patients can get care aboard the ship. And referrals have been minimal ... "The disconnect or the apparent disconnect was in the communications flow," Rosselló said.
He acknowledged that the system must get better.

"I asked for a complete revision of that so that we can now start sending more patients over there," Rosselló said.

There. Even the Puerto Rican governor admits where the problem lie.

Internal problem it looks like.

Not surprised.

Local hospitals and clinics say the Department of Health decides who to send. The Governor admits there is a disconnect in communication.

Massive power scramble happening in PR.

MSM not honest with the public.

a reply to: DupontDeux

It is tough to blame the Puerto Rican hospitals on this one. They never got an official message from FEMA to the procedure. It appears that FEMA has not exactly reached out to the hospitals in PR either.

Both sides are to blame.

What is the point of bringing the hospital ship without a clear plan on how to get patients there?

a reply to: jrod

So then why doesn't someone in the hospital's administration ask??? I am pretty familiar with the hierarchy in a hospital and there is definitely someone who's job it would be to make an inquiry. To hear them say they are going off of rumor only tells me they're not trying...because there are people to ask and pass,the inquiry up the chain...even if that is from hospital to local government then to the governor's office and on to FEMA...in fact I would bet they could straight up ask the NG which is operating on the island still. I know if I had family in the hospital and they were stuck in a clinic with serious issues...I'd be asking everyone I could and taking my inquiry up the chain as fast as I could.

what good is all this advanced expensive technology if average humans are too stupid to use it?

I don't know what's going on with the Comfort there. Haven't followed the story enough to weigh in on what the problems and delays are. I can however, state that the groundwork was laid for care in the U.S. for people who needed assistance after they were transported here.

I have a family member who has a home health care business, focusing on elderly persons who need nursing care and live at home. Our state licensing and regulatory agency called about 5 days before the Comfort even left port here and asked if she had the capacity to accept new patients on a short to mid term basis.

The person who called stated that the Comfort was either to transport patients or triage and arrange air transportation to those in need and they were to be temporarily housed in hotels and assisted living facilities across our state. She stated there was an urgent need and that every home health agency in the state was being contacted to provide assistance. The turnaround time was expressed as a matter of a few weeks at most, potentially less. My relative was told funds were already allocated by the Fed Gvt to cover expenses that would then go to the states and they were fast tracking everything due to the severe nature of the situation and great need.

Only mentioning this because I actually took a few of those calls, and on this end, they seemed to be on the ball.

a reply to: jrod

Why is itnthe ships fault? It's doing exactly what it's supposed to do. PR is handling the hurricane? They barely have roads! Trump is a jackass, but saying it's his fault the ship doesn't grow legs and walk on land is pretty dumb.