Health

As Hospitals Close and Doctors Flee, Sudan’s Health Care System Is Collapsing

As the fight for control of Sudan enters its third week, health services are crumbling rapidly in the capital, Khartoum, and the calamitous consequences of brutal fighting could escalate the conflict into a broader humanitarian crisis. There is growing concern that there is

The full collapse of the health system could be days away, warned the Sudan Doctors’ Union.

According to the World Health Organization, hospitals have been shelled and two-thirds of Khartoum’s hospitals are closed. Officials said more than a dozen health workers died.Beyond that, the ‘hidden victims’ are dying of sickness and disease as basic medical services come into play Dr. Abdullah Attiyah, Executive Director of the Physicians Guild, said.

“We get a lot of calls every day, ‘Where are we going?'” he said. “These are questions that we cannot answer.”

Millions of civilians remained trapped. Fighting was reported in the capital, although the latest truce allowing civilians to escape was to end at midnight Sunday, and the Rapid Relief Force said it would extend the humanitarian ceasefire for another three days.

The Sudanese army agreed to extend the ceasefire in a statement on Sunday, but accused emergency aid forces of violating the ceasefire and occupying hospitals. says there is.

As the situation worsens, other countries scramble to evacuate their populations by any means necessary. The UK has flown more than 2,122 of her people on her 21 flights by Saturday, and another flight is scheduled to evacuate her from Sudan to ports in eastern Sudan on Monday. The British government announced on SundayAmericans hope to travel in long lines of buses, trucks and cars north to Egypt or Port Sudan, where they hope to board ships to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Sudan’s Ministry of Health is nowhere to be seen. Physician unions say they have received little support or contact from the government. Witnesses and officials said medical facilities were being used by fighters as defensive positions, and warehouses storing medical supplies were looted, doctors said.

In addition, paramilitary groups are occupying national laboratories, officials say. Dr. Attia, who, like others, spoke by phone from Khartoum, said samples of diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis could be misused. The lack of recovery of bodies in morgues and on the streets is another concern, he added.

Hundreds of doctors have fled, and there are rumors that Emergency Response Force fighters have kidnapped medics and are holding them at gunpoint to treat their wounded comrades. Dozens of members of the Sudan Doctors Union are said to be missing.

Hospitals do not have enough staff to cope with a severe shortage of doctors and other health workers. Alban Jadid hospital in eastern Khartoum normally has at least 400 staff, but now he has only eight health workers. Al-Jodha hospital in southern Khartoum is teetering on her four-person side: a surgeon, an anesthesiologist and two nurses, Dr. Atia said.

“Sudanese health workers have done the impossible, caring for the wounded without water, electricity and basic medical supplies,” said Patrick Youssef, the Red Cross’ regional director for Africa, in a statement. said in

Sudan’s doctors’ union issued notices several times a day on Facebook listing the few hospitals still operating in Khartoum, or made urgent calls for doctors to report to field hospitals set up in homes across the city. I am warning you.

Away from the hospital, medical staff must use their wit and all means to treat the wounded.

At a field hospital in Al Mamoura, Dr. Mohamed Karrar improvised an intercostal drain system using a sterile soda bottle to drain blood from a punctured lung of a shot victim. A long shift in the now-closed Ibrahim Malik Teaching Hospital trauma ward in central Khartoum helped prepare him, but Dr. Kahler worked in a living room converted into an operating room while working in the war. You have to fight sound.

“I know we are at risk in these areas,” he said.

At Al Nada, one of the few hospitals still operating, health workers are evacuated several times a day, hiding under beds and tables with patients from airstrikes and heavy artillery fire. According to the hospital’s doctor, Dr. Mohamed Fas, everyone is so nervous that the sound of an oxygen cylinder opening could cause staff to flee.

Al Nada, a private facility, is now offering free pediatric services. Thanks to a donation from the American Medical Association in Sudan. Early in the conflict, the hospital’s management ordered only pregnant women and children to provide shelter for a small fraction of her more than 24,000 women who, according to WHO, are expected to give birth in Sudan in the next few years. decided to treat week.

In the weeks since the fighting began, 220 babies have been born and most have survived, Dr. Fuss said.

One woman sprinted through an active fighting area and barely made it to the emergency room, he said. Her husband then showed Dr. Fass the bullet holes in the car. Another woman gave birth at her home but needed urgent medical attention due to complications. Mothers and children were trapped in their homes for days with artillery fire raging overhead, doctors said. When they finally made it to the hospital, it was too late for the dead infant.

“They have to go through this hell to get to the hospital,” Dr. Fass said.

Neighbors seeking care are ringing Dr. Fass’ doorbell at home. Twice last week, Omdurman, north of the city, said he had declared two dead in Althora. Both are diabetic and have run out of insulin in cities with looted pharmacies and a thriving medical black market.

Now the doctor said he was taking home remedies hidden in the car to cheer him up. But in a region that is rapidly transforming from a ghost town to an active war zone, even the long journey from hospital to home could put his life in danger.

Before the war, Dr. Fuss had filled out an application to work in a hospital in South Africa. He planned to specialize in pediatric neurology there. However, he and his wife, who are also doctors whose final exams were scheduled for May 6, decided to stay.

“If you see what I see every day in my daily practice, you’ll understand my situation,” Dr. Fass said.

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