Fuel Scarcity Likely to Stop Yemen’s Taiz Hospital Services
(AWP) - Patients in the Yemeni province of Taiz are gravely concerned due to lack of fuel that is almost running out and could cause the al-Thawra Hospital, the main one in the city, to go out of service, posing a great risk to the lives of patients with kidney failure who need regular dialysis sessions.
“I receive two dialysis sessions per week. I was told we might not have any more sessions due to disrupted fuel supply. I used to have three sessions per week. If diesel is not available, this means we will die,” said Fouad Qahtan, a patient with kidney failure.
“We appeal to supporters and the health ministry to give top priority to the issue of diesel fuel,” he added.
The harm is not confined to kidney failure patients. It included visitors of other wards in the hospital, like Mohamed Aly Saleh, a diabetes patient.
“I came to the hospital for three days and each time I was told that the hospital cannot provide services due to lack of diesel fuel. This is the only hospital in Taiz,” said Saleh.
“Al-Thawra hospital is the last one. If it stops, patients will die. Fuel supply was disrupted. There are many people who suffer from kidney failure and heart and chest diseases,” he added.
Abdel-Rahim al-Sam’i, the director of al-Thawra Hospital in Taiz, warned that the health facility will likely stop providing any services if fuel ran out.
“The disrupted fuel supply in al-Thawra Hospital in Taiz will cause many wards to go out of service. The most dangerous of all, which poses a risk to the citizens lives in the same hour and same minute, is the kidney dialysis center. Kidney dialysis cannot be delayed,” he explained.
“If patients do not get two dialysis sessions per week, sediments will accumulate in their bodies and death will be certain. Moreover, the fuel capacity to operate the hospital as a whole is 45,000 liters, which means other wards will also go out of service,” noted Sam’i.
Earlier this month, Yemeni Minister of Health Qassem Bahaibah, warned the health system in the country could collapse due to an acute decrease in funding for health support by more than 70%.
He stressed that the health sector was in a pressing need for immediate and sustainable interventions to guarantee basic health services are provided to millions of citizens who depend on them to stay alive.