SouthAussie said:
The World Health Organization today warned that attacks on Ukrainian hospitals, ambulances and other health care facilities have increased “rapidly” in recent days and vital medical supplies are running low.
The UN agency on Monday confirmed at least nine people had died in 16 attacks on health care facilities since the start of a Russian invasion, reports Reuters, but it did not say who was responsible.
Among the supplies running low are oxygen, insulin, PPE, surgical supplies and blood products.
Russia-Ukraine war: Russia accused of breaking Mariupol ceasefire; Poland offers US its MiG-29 fighter jets – live
Additionally from WHO:
Donors making a difference: In Ukraine emergency
8 March 2022
“WHO has issued an appeal for funding to support Ukraine’s health services and care for the country’s refugees”
[...]
“Supported by donors, WHO takes prompt action to bolster health services in Ukraine
WHO has sent large shipments of medical supplies to Ukraine and released US$ 5.2 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies to respond to the country’s urgent health needs.
WHO shipments have arrived in Poland bearing 76 metric tonnes of emergency health supplies bound for Ukraine. The shipments included supplies for surgery, trauma and health care, along with freezers, refrigerators, ice packs and cool boxes.
“WHO is on the ground, working with our partners to respond, to assess the impact of the conflict on the health of Ukraine’s people and its health system and to deliver essential medical supplies from our hub in Dubai,” WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said last week as the crisis unfolded.
WHO is also exploring solutions to maintain the country’s supply of medical oxygen and other life-saving treatments, amid disrupted supply lines.
The money in WHO’s Contingency Fund for Emergencies comes from
24 donor countries whose pooled contributions allow WHO to respond quickly to disease outbreaks and emergencies – often within the first 24 hours, a critical time in a crisis. Created in 2015, the Fund is one of WHO’s most powerful tools for responding in acute health emergencies.
[...]
“Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (WHO Director General) and Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge (Director of the WHO Regional European Office) have called for critical medical supplies to safely reach those who need them and are working with partners to establish safe transit for shipments through Poland.
“The oxygen supply situation is nearing a very dangerous point in Ukraine,” the two leaders said in a joint statement on 27 February. “Trucks are unable to transport oxygen supplies from plants to hospitals across the country, including the capital Kyiv. 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.”
The joint statement notes that medical oxygen is crucial for patients with COVID-19, injuries, trauma, sepsis, complications of childbirth and numerous other conditions.”
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Dangerously low medical oxygen supplies in Ukraine due to crisis, warn WHO Director-General and WHO Regional Director for Europe
Fenruary 27, 2022
“You can’t be put on a waiting list for oxygen. You can’t stand in a queue for oxygen,” Dr Mike Ryan, Executive Director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, told a briefing last week. “Oxygen saves your life right now.” Above: a makeshift perinatal centre in the basement of a medical complex in Kharkiv. ©UNICEF/Oleksandr Brynza
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WHO - Emergency appeal - Ukraine and neighbouring countries
2 March 2022
https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/defa...ountries.pdf?sfvrsn=c6097bb5_20&download=true
