Director of the Laboratories and Blood Banks Unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Health Shahda Barhoum sounded the alarm over the acute shortage in Gaza’s vital laboratory testing materials saying the situation is very likely to take a turn for the worse by next year.
Barhoum said much-needed blood gas testing services might go out of operation as a result of the shortage.
Others tests needed in the pre-transfusion phases including Hepatitis C and B tests along with HIV analysis also risk to be suspended in the enclave.
For his part director of the Department of Central Laboratories Husam Qweidar said Gaza’s labs have run out of basic items needed for medical diagnosis and follow-up.
He warned of an imminent crisis in phenylketonuria (PKU) test which is done to check whether a newborn baby has the enzyme needed to use phenylalanine in his or her body.
Materials to conduct other life-saving tests namely thyroid and organ transplantation are also very likely to go scarce in the near future.
Qweidar warned that the absence of such vital tests for newborns might lead to mental retardation and general learning disability.
383 laboratory materials out of 657 types have gone out of stock. 274 other types are expected to reach a stock-out in no more than three months.
