Gaza’s health system on the brink under relentless Israeli airstrikes

International aid organisations and relief workers on the ground in Gaza are sending out pleas to the world for assistance as Israeli airstrikes have killed hundreds of people and injured thousands, putting a serious strain on the health infrastructure of the besieged enclave.

More than 2 million people live in congested cities of Gaza, which was already facing a shortage of essential medical supplies before the latest round of hostilities broke out.

“Just days before the current escalation erupted, the Ministry of Health in Gaza appealed to the international community to support patients who receive kidney dialysis as disposable supplies for the dialysis procedure were out of stock,” Hafez Azzam, a Palestinian aid worker, tells TRT World.

There are around 1,100 patients, including dozens of children, who suffer from kidney failure, and are now at the risk of losing their lives in absence of life-saving dialysis procedures.

And this is not even the immediate and most pressing problem facing doctors in Gaza as thousands of people injured by Israeli bombs have overwhelmed hospitals.

“The situation in Gaza is catastrophic; the hospitals are overwhelmed. The number of wounded is extremely high – there is a constant influx into all the hospitals in the Gaza Strip. The medical teams are exhausted, working around the clock to treat the wounded,” Leo Cans, the head of Palestine mission for MSF - Doctors Without Borders - said in a statement.

“The bombardments are very intense. Entire buildings are being destroyed, including one last night right next to the MSF office.”

Israel has cut off the water, food, electricity and other essential supplies as it bombs the crowded Palestinian enclave following Hamas surprise attack on Israeli towns near Gaza borders.

Gaza is already stretched out to its limit as a result of more than 16 years of blockade that crippled its economy. Even before Israel imposed its ‘complete siege’, Gaza’s health sector was on verge of collapse.

WHO has called for a humanitarian corridor to be established into and out of Gaza.

Running low

More than 187,500 people in Gaza have been displaced since Saturday. Israelis have targeted apartment buildings, giving residents a few minutes to evacuate before the bombs drop.

Most of the displaced people have taken shelter in United Nations-run schools. The UN on Tuesday said that at least 18 of its temporary shelters sustained damage due to Israeli airstrikes in which people were reportedly injured and killed.

Israeli airstrikes have damaged and left the only hospital in Gaza’s Beit Hanoun city, which has a population of more than 36,000 people.

The aid worker Azzam said, “Large influx of casualties threaten the ability of the health system to cope. All nurses were called to attend to the nearest hospital to help as health workers are at capacity already.”

Dr. Medhat Abbas, Gaza-based Health Ministry official, told NPR that the health facilities are consuming one month’s worth of supplies in just a single day.

“Unless these borders are opened at once, for the fuel to run the generators and for medications, medical supplies to come at once to Gaza, there will be a collapse of the health system. I assure you there will be a collapse in the health system.”

Hospitals in Gaza are getting only 3-4 hours of electricity supply, putting at risk the survival of injured people who rely on ventilators and other life-saving machines.

“The power cut dramatically impacts the delivery of health services. Hospitals do not have sufficient emergency fuel reserves to run backup power generators to keep the hospitals running,” said Azzam.

“I’ve seen many families fleeing in groups trying to locate safe shelters.” Azzam added, “The problem is that UN-run schools have reached 90 percent of their capacity. Shall the escalation continue, there’s a critical need to establish more shelters.”

“The size of destruction is beyond the capacity of a single humanitarian agency to respond to. There’s a critical need to stop the awful attacks and then for aid organisations and governments to collaborate to prevent the total collapse of basic services in Gaza.”

One of the biggest challenges facing the delivery of aid at the moment is the lack of safe access.

“It is almost impossible to deliver safe services and reach out to people in need. Nine ambulances were damaged, two hospitals sustained major damage, seven journalists were killed and crossings were closed,” said Azzam.