The Director of Rafik Hariri University Hospital (RHUH) Dr. Firas Abiad said on Saturday that the “absence of clarity and dithering on subsidization policy for medical supplies have resulted in unprecedented and severe shortages in hospitals.”
“Even basic medical services are now being affected, If not sorted soon the ramifications will be many and on different levels,” he added in a series of tweets.
Abiad stressed that patients “will suffer the most,” noting that the shortages “will affect the magnitude of the services, the quality of care, and may also endanger the patient’s safety.”
“Most medical supplies in hospitals are imported, so the shortages are wide ranging and affect all levels of care,” he explained.
Abiad also said that “doctors and nurses, unable to perform their duties, are becoming frustrated and demoralized as they find themselves liable in circumstances out of their control.”
“This added pressure is making the option of leaving more appealing,” he went on by saying.
“Shortages in staff will compound the problem,” Abiad added.
He also noted that hospitals which are facing mounting expenses from the increase in costs of supplies, and diminishing revenues due to inflation and fixed tariffs, are close to financial ruin.
“Currently, the solution has become asking patients to pay extra sums to bridge the gap,” Abiad added.
“Simply, most patients don’t have the money or can’t access it,” he noted.
“Meanwhile, the problem continues to fester with no solution in sight, this worsens the shortages and makes them more costly,” he warned.
“It is a vicious cycle. Here, accomplishments have many fathers, crisis are born orphans,” he concluded by saying.