Gaza: The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza warned that the shortage of medicines and medical supplies in hospitals has reached unprecedented and critical levels due to the ongoing Israeli blockade and aggression on Gaza Strip.
According to Qatar News Agency, Assistant Undersecretary of Ministry of Health in Gaza, Dr. Maher Shamieh, said on Thursday that the closure of border crossings to medical supplies and medicines is exacerbating the crisis, adding catastrophic challenges to providing healthcare to the increasing number of patients and injured people due to continued airstrikes targeting civilians.
He confirmed that 42% of vaccinations for children are unavailable in Gaza, and that the Israeli occupation is preventing the entry of polio vaccines, which means the collapse of efforts that lasted for the past seven months to combat the epidemic. He also highlighted that the disruption of water lines increases health and environmental risks, including spread of diarrhea and skin diseases.
Dr. Shamieh pointed out that operating rooms, intensive care units, and emergency departments are functioning with depleted stocks of life-saving medicines and medical supplies. He explained that 37% of essential medicines, 59% of medical consumables, 54% of cancer and blood disease medications, 40% of primary care medicines, and 51% of maternal and child health medicines are out of stock.
He stated that 80,000 diabetic patients and 110,000 hypertensive patients are without medications in primary care centers, and the medicines for surgeries, intensive care, and emergency departments are exhausted to unprecedented levels as the genocide continues. He also explained that due to the ongoing power outages, vital hospital departments are relying on generators, which are at risk of stopping due to a shortage of fuel and spare parts, with most of them being damaged.
The Assistant Undersecretary emphasized that Gaza's patients and injured people are deprived of diagnostic imaging services because the occupation destroyed CT scan and MRI machines. Additionally, 13,000 patients and injured individuals have been denied specialized treatment outside Gaza since Rafah crossing was closed after it was seized and occupied by the Israeli army about a year ago.
He further noted that the closure of crossings and the prevention of food supplies threaten the lives of more than 2 million Palestinians, particularly children, with malnutrition and anemia.
Dr. Shamieh also mentioned that the Israeli army recently intensified its targeting of medical and emergency teams. Ambulance crews and humanitarian teams are operating within a direct targeting zone while performing rescue missions for the wounded.
He stressed that these alarming circumstances are placing an enormous burden on healthcare providers and require urgent action to protect the healthcare system from further targeting and ensure necessary medical supplies are provided to enable medical teams to care for patients and the injured.
The Ministry of Health's Undersecretary made an urgent call to replenish drug stocks in hospitals and primary care centers in Gaza, as shortage has reached critical levels due to the Israeli blockade.
Gaza's health sector is facing a severe crisis due to the blockade preventing the entry of medicines and medical supplies, the continuous targeting of medical staff through killing or arrest, and the destruction of major hospitals in Gaza Strip. The recent war crime committed by the Israeli army, which executed 15 members of Palestinian Red Crescent and Civil Defense crews in Rafah, highlighted the deliberate targeting of medical teams by the occupation to prevent them from carrying out their humanitarian duties.