Health Ministry Warns: Drug Shortage Puts Patients' Lives at Risk

The Ministry of Health in Gaza warned of a continued severe shortage of medicines and medical supplies, stressing that the lack of medication threatens the lives of thousands of patients, especially cancer and chronic disease patients. It announced that the shortage of cancer drugs reached 61%, the overall drug shortage 47%, medical supplies 58%, and laboratory testing materials 85%, with shortages in maternal and child health, primary care, kidney, mental health, and emergency drugs. It renewed its appeal to international institutions for urgent intervention.

The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip warned on Monday of the continued severe shortage of medicines and medical supplies, stressing that the ongoing lack of medication exacerbates patients' suffering and threatens the lives of thousands of cases, especially cancer and chronic disease patients. In a statement, the ministry said that cancer and blood disease drugs top the list of drug shortages at 61%, putting cancer patients at grave risk due to the interruption and irregularity of their treatment protocols. It explained that the overall drug shortage reached 47%, while the shortage in medical supplies was 58%, and laboratory testing materials recorded a shortage of up to 85%, threatening a near-complete halt of several essential diagnostic and therapeutic services. The ministry indicated that other vital health sectors suffer from significant shortages, with maternal and child health drugs at 56%, primary health care drugs at 55%, kidney and dialysis drugs at 46%, mental health and neurology drugs at 35%, and emergency and intensive care drugs at 33%, while surgical supplies shortage reached 39% and orthopedic supplies 47%. It pointed out that the acute shortage of essential testing supplies directly affects the ability of medical teams to save patients and wounded, noting that the shortage affected vital laboratory tests, including complete blood count (CBC), blood gases, and clinical chemistry, which are essential for monitoring emergency cases in intensive care and operating departments. The Ministry of Health renewed its appeal to international, UN, and humanitarian institutions to urgently and immediately intervene to bring in pharmaceutical supplies, medical consumables, and laboratory testing materials, warning of the worsening health conditions in the sector.