The World Health Organization says that Ukraine is suffering from dangerously low medical oxygen supplies as a result of Russia’s military invasion, and that it may run out within 24 hours (WHO).
Patients experiencing health difficulties resulting from pregnancy, childbirth, chronic diseases, sepsis, and traumas and trauma, including those with Covid-19, require life-saving medicinal oxygen supplies.
According to the WHO, some 1,700 persons in the country are infected with Covid.
Due to the Russian invasion that began on February 24, the country has been hit with low oxygen supplies. The WHO stated that trucks are unable to transport oxygen supplies from plants to hospitals across the country, including the capital Kiev, which is facing Russian attack.
“The oxygen supply situation is nearing a very dangerous point in Ukraine,” WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and Regional Director for Europe Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge said in a joint statement.
“The majority of hospitals could exhaust their oxygen reserves within the next 24 hours. Some have already run out. This puts thousands of lives at risk,” they added.
Further, they noted that medical oxygen generator manufacturers in several areas are also facing shortages of zeolite — crucial, mainly imported chemical product necessary to produce safe medical oxygen.
Ghebreyesus and Kluge have called for critical medical supplies to safely reach those who need them. The UN agency is also working with partners to establish safe transit for oxygen-related medical devices and trauma treatment supplies through Poland.
Furthermore, electricity and power shortages are jeopardising patient care at essential hospitals. Ambulances transporting patients are also at risk of being caught in the crossfire between Russian and Ukrainian forces, according to the WHO.
Oxygen (O2) “Supplies would require safe transportation, which might include passing through Poland on a logistics corridor. It’s critical to make sure that life-saving medical supplies, like as oxygen, get to individuals who need them “According to Ghebreyesus and Kluge.
They went on to say that Ukraine’s recent progress in strengthening its health systems, which was aided by WHO, “is now at risk of being derailed during the current crisis.”
