Yazidis fear COVID-19 disaster at a time when Shangal is struggling to recover
Part-2
"It will be a disaster»
"Sinjar is not ready for COVID-19," warns Murad Ismael, Director of YAZDA, a Yazidi-led NGO that runs mobile medical clinics in the area, including in remote camps for displaced people on mount Shangal.
"The health system in Sinjar has been strong since the liberation from is, thanks in part to international and local NGOs working in The area.
Because of the pressure on NGOs, many of them have either left or are working at reduced capacity," he added, saying that local hospitals will bear the brunt of the outbreak.
According to Ismael, several hundred medical staff work in two hospitals in Shangal and twelve medical centers.
However, the lack of necessary equipment precedes a coronavirus pandemic
"There are only a few fans, maybe less than five.
There is also an acute shortage of personal protective equipment that will not last a week if an outbreak occurs, " he told Rudaw.
"These hospitals are basically like medical centers
They are small and don't have the capacity or the equipment...they don't have specialized doctors to deal with any crisis, let alone COVID-19," added Abid Shamdin, Executive Director of the Nadi Foundation.
His organization warns of an acute need for medical services in the area since 2018, citing lack of water, electricity and transport problems as key obstacles to quality healthcare in Shangala.
Two years later, some progress was made – with the support of the French government, a new maternity ward and operating room were opened.
However, the spread of the new coronavirus has stopped some plans in their tracks with vital recovery work – including a new hospital that was due to start next month – now postponed indefinitely.
Source riataza.com
Tags:
Yazidis fear COVID-19 disaster at a time when Shangal is struggling to recover
Part-2
"It will be a disaster»
"Sinjar is not ready for COVID-19," warns Murad Ismael, Director of YAZDA, a Yazidi-led NGO that runs mobile medical clinics in the area, including in remote camps for displaced people on mount Shangal.
"The health system in Sinjar has been strong since the liberation from is, thanks in part to international and local NGOs working in The area.
Because of the pressure on NGOs, many of them have either left or are working at reduced capacity," he added, saying that local hospitals will bear the brunt of the outbreak.
According to Ismael, several hundred medical staff work in two hospitals in Shangal and twelve medical centers.
However, the lack of necessary equipment precedes a coronavirus pandemic
"There are only a few fans, maybe less than five.
There is also an acute shortage of personal protective equipment that will not last a week if an outbreak occurs, " he told Rudaw.
"These hospitals are basically like medical centers
They are small and don't have the capacity or the equipment...they don't have specialized doctors to deal with any crisis, let alone COVID-19," added Abid Shamdin, Executive Director of the Nadi Foundation.
His organization warns of an acute need for medical services in the area since 2018, citing lack of water, electricity and transport problems as key obstacles to quality healthcare in Shangala.
Two years later, some progress was made – with the support of the French government, a new maternity ward and operating room were opened.
However, the spread of the new coronavirus has stopped some plans in their tracks with vital recovery work – including a new hospital that was due to start next month – now postponed indefinitely.
Source riataza.com
Tags:
