Since the outbreak of fighting in Sudan, residents of the capital Khartoum and some other cities have suffered from the collapse of health services, in light of damage to some hospitals and medical facilities, not to mention shortages and shortages of medicines. As reported by medical products, companies and doctors.
Despite the arrival of medical aid, Sudanese doctors who spoke to the Al-Hurra website are skeptical of official statements that speak of equitable distribution to all states, stressing that the Sudanese military receives at least half of the aid.
They warned that there is a persistent shortage of medicines, especially for patients suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer, kidney disease and other diseases that require continuous medical treatment.
The Sudanese Ministry of Health said on Wednesday that “distribution and provision of services is still continuing in most states”, noting that it had “received medical supplies from more than 10 international and regional agencies”. Continued distribution to Sudanese regions.
“Suspicions of corruption”
Dr. Aladdin Awad, a consultant in liver surgery and organ transplantation, responded to Al-Hurra’s inquiries by saying that the medical sector in Sudan is suffering under the weight of tensions, even with aid exports, “but there are suspicions of corruption related to the distribution process.”
He said, “At least 50 percent of the medical aid shipment sent by the World Health Organization was seized by the military and the authorities as it was kept in their warehouses, and no amount was delivered to the centers in Khartoum.”
Dr Awad explained that Sudan has received less than 26 aid items, 18 of which are medical and eight food exports, but “the problem is not receiving these exports, but the lack of transparency or a clear international mechanism of oversight”. their distribution.”
Some of the shipments sent by the Red Cross were distributed fairly, but “the medical aid sent by the World Health Organization, the military seized it for security reasons,” he added, because it was coming from certain countries. They should inspect it, “and it will not carry the weapons sent to the troops.” Fast support.
He said the aid was sent to the military airport where no medical facility could reach it.
Sudan’s army and rapid support forces began a week-long ceasefire, which took effect on Monday, aimed at allowing the delivery of aid and services after ongoing fighting between the two sides since mid-April. This has led to hundreds of deaths and triggered a refugee crisis.
Pointing out that “cancer and kidney patients are the most affected by drug shortages,” Awad stressed the need to set up an independent national committee to oversee the delivery of medical aid. or medicinal products.”
Although the fighting has subsided, there have been reports of skirmishes, artillery fire and airstrikes over the past few days.
“The situation in Khartoum has improved since May 24, when the ceasefire monitoring mechanism found serious violations of the agreement, apart from monitoring military aircraft and sporadic firing in Khartoum,” Saudi Arabia and the US said in a joint statement.
Al-Hura tried to contact Sudan’s central ministry of health, but did not receive a response by the time the report was published.
Health Minister Dr. Haitham Muhammad Ibrahim announce The ministry seeks to make the Nile state a “regional pillar” for medical supplies and health emergencies for Sudan, “due to its priority advantages as it occupies a strategic and privileged position.”
“Continuous Suffering” for Patients
Hisham Hassan Abdel-Wahab, a Sudanese urologist, said their pleas to the international community had succeeded in providing kidney patients with drugs that would “meet the needs of kidney transplant patients for a maximum of one and a half months.”
In an interview with the Al-Hurrah website, he said, “Drugs and supplies for dialysis patients are still experiencing shortages in many medical centers, especially in Khartoum, where aid may have arrived at the port, but there are problems with its disposal. We are supplying the centers.”
She points out Information Sudan’s Ministry of Health estimates that there are about 12,000 kidney patients who receive periodic dialysis or kidney transplants.
Kidney patients in Sudan…warn of “catastrophe” despite government pledges
In light of warnings of a humanitarian and medical “catastrophe” in Sudan due to the fighting, Sudan’s Ministry of Health sent messages of reassurance that kidney patients in the country are receiving treatment and that dialysis services will continue to be provided. In one report, 12,000 kidney patients were either on periodic dialysis or had kidney transplants.
Abdel Wahab called for “kidney patients to be transferred from Khartoum and other conflict areas to other cities, and to ensure that they receive the necessary treatment, so that their suffering and the fatigue that exacerbates their disease do not increase.”
Abdel-Wahab warned, “From the continuation of the armed conflict, it will be devastating for patients already suffering from difficult conditions in Sudan.”
Member of the Elected Council of the Medical Syndicate Dr. Safa Muhammad described the situation in the health sector in Sudan as “extremely dire” as the problem of “supply of medicines and health supplies” continues.
In his interview with the “Al-Hurra” website, he confirmed what Dr. Awad said, “The Sudanese army receives medical aid, which is stored in warehouses at the Wadi Sayedna military airport, and despite trying to communicate with the military medical staff, they do not authorize this aid (to decide the fate).” Confirmed no.
Dr. Safa says, “The shortage of medicines and supplies has reached medical facilities not only in Khartoum but also in other states, especially as these facilities are overwhelmed by the transfer of patients from the capital, not to mention their dealings with the wounded in the war that has engulfed the country since mid-April.”
And I was skeptical Official reports Who does not report what is happening on the ground, referring to him as “a doctor practicing his work in the field”, he reveals the reality of the suffering of medical staff working without adequate equipment or medicines. requirements of the cases they handle.”
“After one of our medical warehouses in Khartoum was ransacked, electricity to refrigerators was cut off and medicines were taken,” Jean-Nicolas Armstrong of the NGO Doctors Without Borders said in a statement on Wednesday.
“The entire cold chain has been destroyed, so the drugs have gone bad and are no longer fit to treat any patient,” he added.
“We’re seeing humanitarian principles being violated, and the available humanitarian space is shrinking like I’ve rarely seen,” Armstrong added.
A World Health Organization database shows 28 attacks on health facilities in Sudan since clashes broke out between the Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces last month.
Only 16 percent of health facilities in Khartoum are functioning, but they suffer from shortages of supplies and their medical staff are exhausted, according to the World Health Organization.
Khartoum..Sexual assaults and horrific scenes on the streets of the capital
More than a million Sudanese have fled the country since clashes broke out between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, some across the border and others content to move on from Khartoum, the main scene of the fighting. Between the loyalists of the two camps, but fortune was not on the side of many, they were trapped between Khartoum and Umm Durman and Khartoum North.
Several humanitarian organizations reported looting during the Sudan crisis, including the World Food Program, which said it lost $13 to $14 million worth of supplies.
The fighting in Sudan has displaced some 1.3 million people, displaced within Sudan or sought refuge in neighboring countries.
The health ministry said at least 730 people were killed, although the actual number may be higher.
With half of Sudan’s population of about 49 million people in need of aid, the US Agency for International Development said grain to feed two million people would arrive in Sudan by ship.
But it’s unclear how exports and other aid can be delivered to Sudan without security guarantees and permits.
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