First UK Emergency Medical Team arrives in Nepal to save lives of earthquake survivors
An eight-strong team of British trauma medics and humanitarian experts has arrived in Nepal to help deal with huge numbers of injuries in the aftermath of Saturday's earthquake.
The UK Emergency Medical Team is funded by DFID and managed by Save the Children in partnership with UK Med and Handicap International. It is the lead UK medical response after natural disasters.
The team was part of the UK's humanitarian response, overseen by DfID, that flew out to Nepal on Sunday.
This is the first specialist medical team from the UK to deploy to Kathmandu following Saturday’s major earthquake – it includes a paramedic, an emergency physician, an anaesthetist, a rehabilitation advisor, a logistics manager, a medical logistics manager, a team leader and deputy team leader. More UK medics are expected to arrive in country to bolster the team in the coming days.
Rob Holden, the team’s leader who works for Save the Children, said: “We are hearing a lot of reports from the ground that there are thousands of survivors with trauma injuries who urgently need surgery – worryingly this includes the most vulnerable of society such as women and children.
“This massive earthquake has stretched medical services in an already impoverished nation to breaking point – doctors have been forced to operate around the clock and often in makeshift hospitals made of tents. It’s simply not enough so we are keen to get on the ground and help to support them by providing surgery to those who need it most, especially women and children.”
The team has gone ahead to assess the needs on the ground. It will go to a base, a facility identified in advance, to immediately begin dealing with the most severe surgical needs.
