Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Mekelle (Agenzia Fides) - "We trust that the whole world, through international, continental and regional institutions, has all the tools to stop this man-made tragedy and allow humanitarian aid to reach our region very quickly and without restrictions". The appeal was launched by Dr. Amanuel Haile, Executive Director in charge of both the Ayder CS Hospital and the Faculty of Health Sciences, a government institution administered by Mekelle University in Tigray. "Before the outbreak of the crisis in the country, our hospital served a total population of more than 9 million people. We offered annual visits to almost 300,000 patients, more than 8,000 major surgeries and more than 5,000 deliveries a year - explains the doctor -. The service collapsed more than 15 months ago, since the siege began in July 2021, and deteriorated rapidly. Everything is lacking, food for patients, linen, detergents, disinfectants, etc. We have to beg to keep the hospital running". Haile adds that the government has not sent any budget for more than seven months, and the staff has not been paid for more than eight months. "It is not possible to withdraw money from banks because they are closed. Stocks of drugs and pharmacy supplies, which were over 80% in pre-war years, have plummeted to less than 10-15%. We reuse gloves, we adapt cotton clothing as gauzes, expired medications, intravenous solutions are lacking. In recent times alone, we have lost more than 60 patients who could have been saved or kept alive thanks to the dialysis service available only at our hospital. We use expired kits to test for HIV, we cannot diagnose the virus in children under 18 months. We can no longer offer treatment for hepatitis B and C, for which we were the only center in the northern region of Ethiopia; we no longer have medication for mental illness; cancer patients cannot receive chemotherapy or radiotherapy; there are no vaccines, and very few supplies for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.
Ambulance services are literally cut off in most of the region; The cost of transportation has skyrocketed due to severe fuel shortages, making it very difficult for patients to reach hospitals on time".
"Our college is over 18 years old and the hospital is over 14 years old. After a very difficult start, the institute has grown rapidly in the last decade, thanks to the hard work of our staff, the enormous support of our university and local and international partners. We now have more than 3,500 employees both in the college and in the hospital, including more than 20 PhD students, researchers and more than 100 specialists in different medical disciplines", concludes the CEO. (AP/GF) (Agenzia Fides, 18/2/2022)
