The following is an archived copy of a message sent to a Discussion List run by the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
Views expressed in this archived message are those of the author, not of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
[Main archive index/search] [List information] [Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq Homepage]
Baghdad hospitals pushed to the limit Supply of drugs and water run low Owen Bowcott Wednesday April 9, 2003 The Guardian Hospitals in Baghdad are running out of anaesthetics, drugs and medical equipment as intensive fighting in the capital prevents delivery of fresh supplies and water. With staff from the International Committee of the Red Cross and other aid agencies unable to cross most of the city, it is becoming increasingly difficult to assess the severity of the situation. All the main surgical hospitals in Baghdad are now relying on back-up generators for power. In Geneva ICRC spokeswoman Nada Doumani warned that "hospitals have reached their limit". There were not enough anaesthetics, she added. The World Health Organisation also reported a "shortage of equipment to deal with burns, shrapnel wounds and spinal injuries" and described the situation in the hospitals as "critical". "Even after three days of non-stop work, medical staff at the hospital are still providing professional care for their patients," an ICRC assessment added. "Two tonnes of medical assistance, including drugs for anaesthesia and supplies sufficient for 100 wounded patients requiring surgery, have been provided [to Kindi hospital]." Roland Huguenin-Benjamin, an ICRC official in the besieged city, said doctors were exhausted and drugs were in short supply. One hospital had carried out 60 serious operations in a single day. The Medical City group of four hospitals, one of Baghdad's most modern facilities, was without power or water and only six of its 27 operating theatres were able to work, Mr Benjamin told the BBC. The water station near the hospital had been hit. A doctor at Kindi hospital in the north-east of the city reported treating "injuries to the head, to the chest, to the limbs" as fighting intensified. The hospital had medical supplies to last for only another two days, he warned. The ICRC managed to deliver 5,400 one-litre bags of drinking water to Karama and Mansour hospitals. Power supplies in most of the city have failed, the agency said, cutting the amount of water being pumped. Without adequate sanitation the risk increases of spreading of disease. Outbreaks of diarrhoea have been reported in Basra, Safwan and Nassiriya. Emergency generators which have been running continuously for days are in danger of breaking down. Workers responsible for maintaining the infrastructure have not been able to go to work. Water treatment works and sewage pumping stations in eastern and southern Baghdad have stopped functioning. Attempts to deliver drinking water to much of the city had to be abandoned because of the danger from gunfire. Two tanker trucks, however, did manage to reach distribution points in central Rusafa. The ICRC is considering sending in extra supplies from its warehouses in Kuwait, Jordan or Syria but is awaiting guarantees of any convoy's safety. Casualty figures continue to rise but both the ICRC and the WHO say they unable to provide even an estimate of the number of Iraqis killed and wounded. "Nobody is adding up all the numbers, but it's clear they are huge," a WHO spokesman said. Unicef, the United Nations children's fund, is sending tankers of water from Kuwait to towns in southern Iraq including Safwan, Umm Qasr and Zubayr. Their drivers have been delivering drugs to health clinics. Foreign staff have been unable to enter Iraq because of the dangers. "There's been an increase in diarrhoea cases," a Unicef spokeswoman in London said. "We are providing rehydration sachets because it is always a serious problem in Iraq: one in eight children there does not reach their eighth birthday. "Our drivers have not been able to make their normal deliveries to state-run children's homes in Kerbala or Baghdad for more than a week because of the fighting. On their last visit they said staff had run out of food and children were petrified. There's a question of long-term psychological damage to the children." Britain's Department for International Development acknowledged that aid agencies were having problems reaching hospitals in many cities, including Nassiriya, Amara, Muthanna, Kerbala, Najaf and Hilla. In southern Iraq, a field hospital established by the Royal Army Medical Corps has been treating British and Iraqi casualties. Established near Basra, 34 field hospital is a 200-bed hospital; it currently has 160 patients. _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk