- Title: Yemen hospital struggles with child malnutrition
- Date: 21st June 2017
- Summary: HODEIDAH, YEMEN (JUNE 18, 2017) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CHILD SUFFERING FROM MALNUTRITION LYING ON BED SMALL CHILD IN RED SHIRT SUFFERING FROM MALNUTRITION ON BED WOMAN WATCHING SMALL CHILD ON BED VARIOUS OF CHILDREN SUFFERING FROM MALNUTRITION ON BEDS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DOCTOR, AHLAM OMAR, SAYING: "The ward in the hospital can only take 12 patients. In the beginning, we could've dealt with more patients in the ward but at the moment, there's an overflow of patients with 10 or 12 patients daily, and sometimes more, which requires us to place them in the children's ward or the ER. The number of malnutrition cases has spiked in recent times, more than the department can take." VARIOUS OF MOTHER HOLDING CHILD SUFFERING FROM MALNUTRITION HOSPITAL WARD NURSE PASSING DRINKS TO WOMEN IN HOSPITAL (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) DOCTOR, AHLAM OMAR, SAYING: "We are doing what we can but we can't offer everything nor can we offer all the medications. Now for the families they are suffering and they can't supply all the medications required for the children. There are expensive medications, there are basic medications that can be supplied, but there are others that the child can't have or the families can't supply." MOTHER SITTING NEXT TO CHILD AND NURSE HOLDING TRAY WITH BEAKERS VARIOUS OF MALNOURISHED CHILD RECEIVING TREATMENT
- Embargoed: 5th July 2017 16:02
- Keywords: malnutrition children hospital Hodeidah
- Location: HODEIDAH, YEMEN
- City: HODEIDAH, YEMEN
- Country: Yemen
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
- Reuters ID: LVA0016M7XZDH
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A hospital in Yemen's port city of Hodeidah is struggling to cope with severe cases of child malnutrition.
Emaciated young patients lie motionless on beds as they receive treatment, but a doctor at the city's main hospital says beds and medical supplies are running low.
"The ward in the hospital can only take 12 patients. In the beginning, we could've dealt with more patients in the ward but at the moment, there's an overflow of patients with 10 or 12 patients daily, and sometimes more, which requires us to place them the children's ward or the ER. The number of malnutrition cases has spiked in recent times, more than the department can take," says doctor Ahlam Omar.
Yemen's health system has all but collapsed in its 27-month-old conflict, which has seen a Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed Houthi militia.
UNICEF warned last year that nearly 2.2 million children are acutely malnourished in the country, with at least 462,000 suffering from severe acute malnutrition. This is a 200 per cent increase since 2014.
Omar describes one of her patients, an eight-year-old, who is suffering from severe malnutrition and is still losing weight despite treatment because of suspected problems with his blood.
"We are doing what we can but we can't offer everything nor can we offer all the medications. Now for the the families they are suffering and they can't supply all the medications required for the children. There are expensive medications, there are basic medications that can be supplied, but there are others that the child can't have or the families can't supply," she says.
Hodeidah is controlled by the Houthis who overran Sanaa in 2014 and moved south to Aden in 2015, forcing President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and his administration to flee into exile. A Saudi-led coalition has been retaliating by carrying out massive air strikes to restore Hadi to power.
Even before the war villagers on Yemen's Red Sea coast were already struggling to get clean water, feed themselves and obtain medicine.
Nearly 17 million of Yemen's 28 million people are deemed "food insecure" by aid groups, and around 7 million do not know where they will get their next meal. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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