Gaza: The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reports that the healthcare system in the Strip has reached a catastrophic level, with basic health rights being violated due to the ongoing Israeli blockade and restrictions on the entry of medicines and urgent medical supplies.
According to Qatar News Agency, Director General of Hospitals in Gaza, Dr. Mohammed Zaqout, stated that the crisis has exceeded conventional levels, limiting surgical procedures to emergency cases only as hospitals face an operational decline.
Dr. Zaqout highlighted that patients are being deprived of necessary treatments, and surgeries are conducted under harsh conditions, showing the international community's inability to address the humanitarian crisis. He reported that medicine shortages have reached 50 percent, with medical consumables and laboratory supplies facing 57 percent and 71 percent shortages, respectively. Cancer services are severely affected, with a 61 percent shortage in specialized drugs impacting approximately 4,100 cancer patients.
He further stated that primary care, neurology, nephrology, surgery, and intensive care services suffer from shortages exceeding 40 percent in essential medicines. Open-heart surgeries and cardiac catheterization procedures have ceased due to resource shortages, and there is an 89 percent shortage in ophthalmic surgical supplies. Hospital bed capacity has decreased by over 55 percent despite a rise in patient numbers, with 22 hospitals and 90 health centers now out of service.
Dr. Zaqout expressed concern over the 21,500 patients and wounded individuals on waiting lists to travel abroad for treatment via the Rafah crossing. He noted that 1,517 patients have died waiting to travel, with only around 420 patients evacuated over the past six months. The situation is aggravated by a worsening shortage of generator oil and a lack of spare parts, leading to critical operational challenges for hospitals.
He warned that the shutdown of generators could gravely impact critical departments like intensive care units, neonatal incubators, and dialysis units. Power outages result in the spoilage of sensitive medicines and disruption of medical equipment. Dr. Zaqout emphasized that surgeries are now restricted to emergencies, worsening patient suffering.
Dr. Zaqout concluded by warning that if the crisis continues to accumulate, it could lead to a complete collapse of healthcare services for hundreds of thousands of residents. He urged international health organizations to intervene urgently to prevent a full-scale humanitarian catastrophe.