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Departments War in Iraq Silent Death in Iraq by Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar June 13, 2005 The US backed AlSabaah newspaper published in Baghdad reported on the Medical Drugs situation in Iraq. In its article "Medical centers suffers a decline in the number of patients" published 6 June 2005 it draws a very gloomy picture of the medical services in Iraq more than 2 years after the occupation. The article states that "A team of experts recently assessed the medical drugs situation and found out an alarming (fearful) shortage of certain drugs". The report stated that out of 900 basic drugs needed 401 (45%) of them are totally unavailable while another 350 (39%) drugs are in a very short supply and what is available would last for only "few week". The report did not mention the stock situation of the other 149 (17%).The report quoting the Ministry of Health as saying that the ministry could not provide 26 (81%) drugs out of 32 drugs used for the treatment of patients with chronic illness. Those are patients with illness like diabetes, hypertension, cardiac diseases that must be maintained for a long time on medications. The report states that large quantities of "anesthetic drugs, antibiotics and cancer treatment drugs disappeared". Ministry of health sources attributed the situation to the chaotic situation resulting from the reorganization of the ministry of health after the occupation as well as the problems between the ministry of health, the ministry of finance and the banks causing a delay in opening letters of credits needed to import drugs. Dr. Ali Abdul Hussein, director of Al-Noor medical center in Baghdad, was quoted as saying that the most prominent problem faced in this center is the shortage of certain drugs as well as the unavailability of others. This has created problems with patients and their families. He goes on to say that drugs supplied to the medical center would last only 10 days of every month. Similar complaints were echoed by Dr. Reid Al-Marouh, the assistant director of Al-Mustansyreah specialist medical clinic in Baghdad. The center is attended by an average of 300 patients a day most of them are sent home with prescription to buy from the private pharmacies because the center lacks most of the drugs. The drugs supplied would only last one to two weeks a month. Sometimes the have even shortages of simple drugs like Aspirin or Paracetamol. During the 1980s the government established "Martyr court" pharmacies which were supplied with certain type of drugs to be sold (rather than given free at the hospitals). These types of government run pharmacies were another source of medical drugs Iraqis depended on. It continued to fill the shortages during the 13 years of sanctions. According to Dr. Jawad Abdulallah of "Martyr court" pharmacy No. 4 in Baghdad the pharmacy "became just a word with no meaning" because we are unable to supply drugs that are unavailable at other pharmacies as we used to do. He was quoted as saying "We do not have drugs to regulate the hormones, or infertility drugs, or high potency antibiotics". Dr. Abdulallah attributes the problem to the Ministry of Health. The article published in the U.S. backed newspaper covers only the question of the availability, more precisely the unavailability, of medical drugs after 2 years of occupation. Several reports were published concerning the catastrophic condition of hospitals as a result of the occupation. The chaotic security conditions and the lack of effective functioning government contributed further to deteriorating medical services. Doctors at hospitals were attacked by frustrated patients or even by the American trained Iraqi National Guards. Doctors were threatened or kidnapped forcing many of the highly qualified doctors to quit and leave the country. The destruction of the essential services like clean water, sewage, electricity are contributing to spread of diseases. This means more people require medical services which puts more pressure on the already poorly functioning health system. According to WHO reports Health Situation in Iraq (1990) was "one of the best in the Middle-East Region.". The UN report states that "Before August 1990, the health care system in Iraq was based on an extensive and developed network of primary, secondary and tertiary health care facilities. These facilities were linked among themselves and with the community by a large fleet of ambulances and service vehicles, and by a good communications network facilitating referral to the next level of the health care system. It was estimated by the Government of Iraq (GOI) that 97% and 79% of the urban and rural populations, respectively, had access to health care. While the system tended to emphasize curative aspects, it was complemented by a set of public health activities that included, among others, malaria control, an expanded programme of immunizations (EPI) and tuberculosis control activities." The decline in the health service standards from what it was in 1990 have resulted in the death of no less than 500,000 children under the age of 5 years due to the UK-USA sanctions. A further decline in health services as a result of the current occupation is causing the silent death of thousands of innocent civilians mostly children. This chaotic health system can not be justified under any circumstances. I think UK USA stands for "United to Kill US All"-- this time silently. Now they do not have Saddam to blame!!!! Would they have the courage to blame themselves or their client state? I don't think so. --- Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar is a medical engineer living in occupied Baghadad. You can respond to this column on his blog spot on www.DemocracyRising.US. Email this article to a friend |
Don't forget to check out articles from 2007 and 2008
"White phosphorous: the U.S. used it; the U.S. says it's illegal"
December 28, 2005
David Swanson
"Behind the steel curtain: the real face of the occupation"
December 20, 2005
Sabah Ali
"Waiting is the hardest part"
December 20, 2005
Greg Rollins, CPT
"Scotland: stop the war!"
December 10, 2005
David Swanson
"Not even to save our lives"
December 9, 2005
Mike Ferner
"Inconvenient journalists"
December 1, 2005
Robert C. Koehler, Tribune Media Services
"How pre-war Iraq intel was cooked"
November 24, 2005
Jason Leopold
"Chalabi pushes Iran card in last ditch self-promotion offensive"
November 16, 2005
The Insitute for International Mediation and Conflict Resolution
"Staying a wrong course"
October 17, 2005
Stephen Crockett
"US war photos"
October 16, 2005
Richard S. Ehrlich
"Banging at the gates of empire -- Washington, DC; September 24-26"
October 6, 2005
Peter Chabarek
"What Else Shall We Do?"
October 2, 2005
Mike Ferner
"Will we use the power we have on September 24?"
September 21, 2005
Mike Ferner
"The war in Iraq is increasingly unpopular and must end -- An interview with Dennis Kucinich"
September 8, 2005
Kevin Zeese, DemocracyRising.US
"What eating Cindy Sheehan?"
September 8, 2005
Jason Leopold
"Waiting for the outside world"
September 4, 2005
Mike Ferner
"Families ask that fallen soldiers be honored Sunday by a tolling of bells"
August 27, 2005
Faithful America, National Council of Churches
"Making the Iraq War and Occupation Personal"
August 25, 2005
Ralph Nader
"President Bush Knows the True Reasons He Started A War in Iraq, But He's Not Going to Tell"
August 25, 2005
Jason Leopold
"Armstrong bikes with president over Sheehan grave"
August 25, 2005
Greg Palast
"Sheehan breakthroughs, unbridgeable divides, and taboos unbroken"
August 22, 2005
David Swanson
"The people must demand peace: An interview with Tom Hayden"
August 22, 2005
Kevin Zeese
"Will celebrity-addicted America miss the point? "
August 18, 2005
Mike Ferner
"Jefferson would have stood with Cindy Sheehan "
August 16, 2005
Thom Hartmann
"Why is violence escalating in Iraq?"
August 1, 2005
Eric Straatsma, Peace Think Tank
"How the United States Marked the 3rd Anniversary of the Downing Street Memo"
July 23, 2005
David Swanson, www.afterdowningstreet.org
"Someone Tell Bush That Iraq Wasn’t Responsible for 9/11 Before another War Breaks Out"
June 21, 2005
Jason Leopold
"More damning than Downing Street"
June 21, 2005
Paul Rogat Loeb
"Messengers of Truth: Untangling a Knot of Lies"
June 18, 2005
Kevin Zeese
"How Much Proof Needed Before the Truth Comes Out? "
June 17, 2005
Kevin Zeese
"Silent Death in Iraq "
June 13, 2005
Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar
"Media Black Out Downing Street Minutes"
June 8, 2005
David Swanson, www.afterdowningstreet.org
"Getting Out of Iraq Will Be Tougher than Getting Out of Vietnam"
May 3, 2005
Kevin Zeese and Linda Schade
"No Troops, No Wars"
March 24, 2005
Yoshie Furuhashi
"Iraq’s Election Will Not Guarantee Democracy"
February 5, 2005
Gene C. Gerard
"The U.S. Supreme Court is AWOL on Iraq"
January 29, 2005
Gene C. Gerard
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