"Elderly people with diabetes and high blood pressure are isolated" Dr. DMAT says Kumamoto

"Elderly people with diabetes and high blood pressure are isolated" Dr. DMAT says Kumamoto July 10, 18:47

A doctor from the disaster dispatch medical team "DMAT", who is engaged in medical activities in the disaster area of ​​Kumamoto, responded to an interview with NHK.

"DMAT" is a team of doctors and nurses who support medical institutions in the disaster area, and is dispatched to Hitoyoshi City, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Kuma Village.

On the 10th, Dr. Hisashige Kondo, Deputy Chief of the "DMAT Secretariat," who is in charge of the medical field at the Disaster Countermeasures Headquarters in Kumamoto, interviewed NHK. In Kuma Village, a disaster response headquarters is set up in the village's multi-purpose exchange facility, and DMAT members check the health status of each evacuee.

According to Dr. Kondo, in Hitoyoshi City and Kuma Village, heavy rains made it impossible to drive and many elderly people with chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure were isolated. Some people had to deliver the drug as soon as possible, and in some cases DMAT members walked in the rain for over an hour and a half.

Patients receiving artificial dialysis and medical care at home must be transported to the hospital promptly, but due to the continuous rain, helicopters could not be used, and they were transported overland with the cooperation of the Self-Defense Forces.

Furthermore, it is necessary to pay attention to the infection with the new coronavirus, and it is said that the members try to thoroughly disinfect their hands and fingers.

It is said that there were times when I was at a loss whether to send DMAT from a region where the infection is spreading, but I am getting it from all over the country to provide sufficient support locally.

Dr. Kondo said, ``In this disaster, there are many areas that are difficult to move due to roads being cut off, etc., and we have to be careful about infection with the new coronavirus, and we have to deal with difficult measures, I would like to provide medical care in close proximity to the victims."