Kabul: Lack of oxygen in the country’s hospitals for COVID-19 patients who are seriously ill has posed a new challenge to the coronavirus response in Afghanistan, where, according to officials, over 20,000 people are affected.

Severe patients hardly get access to oxygen in government hospitals, which is in short supply. Qualified doctors and other medical workers are also in short supply, as is medicine.

The relatives of patients say they must bring oxygen balloons themselves to the hospital.

The highest number of COVID-19 deaths was reported on May 7 while it was 12 deaths on May 8 as the total fatalities reached 369. Doctors warn that the deaths are much higher than reported as the Ministry of Public Health has the capacity of testing a maximum of 1,500 tests a day while it claims that over 2,000 samples can be tested a day.

Relatives of few patients claimed that they lost their loved ones due to lack of oxygen in Kabul hospitals.

“I have brought all of them,” said Mohammad, son of a COVID-19 patient, referring to oxygen balloons.

Another Kabul resident, Nematullah, said he lost his young wife to the coronavirus.

“There was no oxygen. We wanted to buy it with our own money. There is no management, there is no system,” he said.

Other relatives of COVID-19 patients who were interviewed outside a hospital in Kabul said they were there to collect the bodies of their family members who died from COVID-19.

“The assistance was made on the name of the corona, but it is embezzled, including oxygen and medicines,” said Sabawoon, a Kabul resident.

“People are searching for doctors from one room to another,” said Jawed, a Kabul resident.

Relatives of other patients said the COVID-19 center is faced with a lack of equipment.

“They bring oxygen, but it is given to strongmen. The poor do not benefit; therefore, their patients die,” said Mirwais, a Kabul resident

The Ministry of Public Health confirmed a lack of oxygen in the country’s hospitals. But the deputy minister of public health, Wahidullah Majroh, said efforts are underway to address these problems.

“In the last two days, the Ali Jenah hospital and Afghan-Japan hospital were faced with nalack of oxygen for one or two hours,” he added. “The Ministry of Public Health has made all its efforts through oxygen-producing companies in Kabul to increase their capacity to maximum and purchase oxygen.”

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