[27/October/2009]

By: Saba's Reportage Department

Translated by: Mahmoud Assamiee

SANA'A, Oct. 27-(Saba)- Investigative report has revealed that Yemeni private and public hospitals refuse to receive cases infected with swine flue virus know as H1N1.

The report indicated the only hospital in Yemen receiving these patients, which allocated special rooms for them, is Al-Thawra Public Hospital in Sana'a. But physicians said these rooms are not medically prepared to receive this kind of pandemic.

The report narrated two stories for a boy and girl public and private hospitals refused to receive them and have been accepted in Al-Thawrah Hospital only after passing 48 hours of infection, the time in which the medication could kill the virus effectively.

"We arrived at Al-Thawra Public Hospital and after the disease diagnosed as H1N1 we were referred to Al-Jomhori Hospital because there was no bed in the section allocated for this disease," said Fathi, the uncle of the patient. "Al-Jomhori hospital refused to receive the case. Then we were referred to al-Kuwait Teaching Hospital but the hospital's management refused also to receive us. When we arrived with the patient at the hospital's emergency unit, doctors and nurses run away from the patient (fearing of infection)."

He proceeds "I felt a dog in any country gets better services than Yemeni citizens."

The report indicated that 40 health cadres have been infected with the virus as a result of their association with patients and an employee working in the Central Laboratory has dead after infection with the virus.

Some doctors accuse the Ministry of Public Health and Population that it does not provide safety's requirements to be able to cure the infected patients safely.

Meanwhile another physician considers the places called insulation rooms are not qualified but like "ordinary ones not better than those in any house but have respirators."

Director of Al-Thawrah Hospital Ahmad al-Ansi said despite humble capabilities of the hospital and the hospital being very crowded, we provided insulation rooms but some hospitals did not receive these directions and these are remedies warning of a catastrophe. Infections with the virus have been increased among workers in the hospital.

He said he did not put aside that foreign companies were behind the spread of such kind of viruses. He cited the spread of viruses like mad cow disease, bird flu and SARS recently.

He described all these pandemics as "biological war being created by big medicine companies in order to sell medications."

Meanwhile, Mohammad Assaidi, physician of Al-Kuwait Teaching Hospital says "the hospital receives cases infected with the virus though it lacks basic medical services." He affirmed that two cases have been died in the hospital.

He further said the hospital receives cases despite that it could not provide even protected masks to its cadre.

Patients and doctors also criticized the ministry of health for not providing equipments to test infected people. According to them there is only one apparatus in the Central Laboratory which receives blood samples from all the country's governorates.

The report unearthed that eight infected cases in one school for girls. Besides, schools complain from crowds, dirtiness and lack of support to face the virus.

Director of Education Office in the Capital Secretariat Kamal al-Ward that operations rooms have been formed across the capital to face cases, how to discover them and how to treat them as well as conducting enlightenment campaigns.

Journalists coming from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia after performing Umra said that Yemen's outlets do not have tools for testing comers. " We did not see any measure in the greatest border outlet between Yemen and Saudi Arabia while Saudi brothers in Attewal outlet treat the issue very seriously," said journalist Amin Assafa'a.

Minister of Public Health and Population Abdul-Karim Rasi' announced recently that the number of infected cases with H1N1 virus in Yemen has reached 921, 843 case have been recovered, 13 others are receiving treatment and there is only one death case.

But the Government's Spokesman Hasan Allawzi announced on Tuesday October 27 after the cabinet's weekly meeting that the number of infection with the virus has reached 1618 cases and 16 death cases. 24 cases have been recorded.


The government has allocated YR 1,4 billon for facing this pandemic. It also took a number of measures toped by a decision made by Ministry of Endowment and Guidance banning old people, pregnant women and children to perform Hajj and Umra rituals this year aiming at protecting them against infection with the virus. Doctors have affirmed these age categories are more vulnerable for infection with the virus because they have weaker immunity.

Director of Pandemic Surveillance and the Spokesman of the Supreme Committee for Combating Swine Flu Abdul-Hakim al-Kuhlani said the increase of infection with the virus refers to the nature of the virus and the speed of its spread not because of government's negligence to do will with the epidemic.

Over distributing protecting masks for students, he affirmed that the ministry of health is not responsible to distribute masks to millions of students but this return to students' concern to take care of themselves.

Al-Kuhlani admitted that many hospitals refuse to receive people infected with swine flu saying "it is so difficult to convince hospitals, despite direction of health ministry, to raise the readiness of the hospitals."

But he indicated that directors of hospitals and all doctors are responsible to cure patients and including every one is severely infected. "Any hospital has respirator and intensive care unit has to receive patients."

He affirmed that the minister issued directives to buy three additional apparatus to test infected people but they have not arrived yet. He said the ministry and the surveillance department have provided medications and protecting masks to hospitals but he said that doctors and nurses run away from their responsibility.

He minified rumors that swine flu vaccination contains substances harm human immunity system.

"The vaccination is completely free from any danger. The ministry of health is still waiting for a quantity of this vaccination by the end of November," he said.

Tamiflu Swiss- made medication is active for treatment seasonal flu and World Health Organization approved it recently as anti H1N1 virus causing the disease. It is produced now by many Arab medication companies. Yemen Drugs Company for Industry and Commerce (Yedco) announced recently that it has being improving timiflue medication.

Yedco's deputy general manager for medication and equipments affairs Mohammad al-Ghaili said "our responsibility, not material gaining, pushed us to improve this medication, especially after the virus has spread."





Saba