Panama installs field hospitals donated by US embassy

Panama has installed four field hospitals donated by the United States Embassy to increase its intensive care capacity amid the coronavirus pandemic. One of the facilities has been set up at San Miguel Arcangel Hospital in San Miguelito, a densely populated area in the northern suburbs of Panama City that has been a focus of COVID-19 cases.

Authorities said the site will be equipped with about 40 beds and a nursing station. The new field hospital will significantly expand intensive care capacity, which San Miguel Arcangel Hospital director Cosme Trujillo said was being stretched. Temporary facilities have also been installed in Panama Oeste and Darien provinces, as well as at the main social security hospital in the capital.

Enrique Lau Cortés, general director of the Social Security Fund of Panama, said the extra capacity would "hopefully" not be needed. According to official figures, Panama has confirmed 214,038 cases and 3,597 deaths linked to the virus. Authorities have restored severe restrictions, including full quarantine during Christmas and New Year, in an effort to curb a rise in infections during December.