Caracas Chronicles

Photo: Wil Riera for The Washington Post

It’s becoming harder to find people who don’t have a relative, friend and/or acquaintance living abroad at this moment. Many people that myself and my family know have either left or have someone close to them in another country.

But beyond that emotional cost, the larger consequences of the Venezuelan exodus are been felt in very critical areas of our society, according to this report from The Washington Post (which was co-written by former Caracas Chronicles colaborator Rachelle Krygier).

But beyond that emotional cost, the larger consequences of the Venezuelan exodus are been felt in very critical areas of our society.

Take for example the educational system: Local NGO “Se Educa” told WaPo that at least 48,000 teachers have quit and most of them have left Venezuela. That number shows a huge jump in comparison to what the same NGO registered in July 2017.

The situation in our public healthcare is not different. Here’s a small snippet from the article.

“At the Jose Manuel de los Rios Children’s Hospital in Caracas, 68 doctors — or 20 percent of the medical staff — quit and left the country over the past two years. The hospital’s cardiology department is now only open for a morning shift, since three of its six specialists are gone. There are 300 vacant nursing positions. Personnel shortages are so bad that the facility can only staff two of its seven operating rooms.

“It now takes eight months to a year for a surgery appointment,” said Huniades Urbina, a senior staff pediatrician.”

Plenty of qualified personnel decided to simply leave their posts looking for better opportunities elsewhere.

Not just that. From the Caracas Subway (Metro) to the electrical sector, plenty of qualified personnel decided to simply leave their posts looking for better opportunities elsewhere. And finding people with who can replace them is a really difficult task.

Of course, the negative aspects of the Venezuelan exodus are being suffered, not only by the most vulnerable sectors (like Juan Carlos Gabaldon recently reported), but by the entire country.

To makes matters worse, this terrible trend shows no end in sight. And the government can’t insult the way out of this problem. Right, Mr. Arreaza?

Special mention should be given to the work of freelance photographer Wil Riera who recently suffered a medical emergency and is currently on a medically-induced coma. Our best wishes to his family, friends and colleagues. You can help him with his medical expenses by donating to this GoFundMe fundraiser.