Crisis in Lebanon's healthcare: The decline of emergency departments and medical staff availability

Lebanon's emergency departments are experiencing a state of emergency, as are the medical staff working in them. According to global standards in relation to population size, Lebanon's hospitals should have 336 emergency doctors. However, the current number does not exceed 40 doctors.

These 40 doctors are expected to provide emergency and rapid health coverage to all patient categories before they are distributed to specialized physicians. The doctors are working at their maximum capacity to meet patients' needs, but they do not possess a magic wand, and the hemorrhaging continues, affecting various specialties.

The head of the medical association recounts the story of a child who died hours after birth due to the inability to perform an urgent heart surgery. The reason for this tragedy is that there is only one pediatric heart surgeon in Lebanon, as the others have left the country one after another.

The hemorrhaging in medical services does not stop there. Before the economic crisis, the number of doctors in Lebanon reached around 15,000. This number has decreased after 3,500 doctors have emigrated since October 17, 2019, to the present day, and more are preparing to leave as the crisis worsens.

In times of crisis and the lack of capacity for hospitalization, family doctors provide solutions for many patients. However, even this specialty is on the verge of disappearing in Lebanon. According to global recommendations and based on the population size, Lebanese people need 1,652 family doctors. Currently, the number of these doctors does not exceed 150.

In the hallways of hospitals, one encounters closed doors. Behind them are empty beds or nursing departments that have been taken out of service. There is no doctor to treat patients, nor medical and nursing staff to follow up on treatment and supervise it. The result, according to the figures of private hospitals specifically, is that 40% of patients are now fighting diseases or receiving "the best available" treatment at home, and many are "slowly dying."