Gaza Health Ministry warns of imminent total shutdown of laboratories, blood banks due to supply shortage

GAZA, July 09 (YPA) – The Palestinian Ministry of Health has warned on Thursday of an imminent and complete shutdown of medical laboratories and blood banks across the Gaza Strip.

This critical situation is a result of a severe shortage of testing materials and medical consumables, driven by Israeli occupation restrictions that prevent the entry of essential supplies.

Sahar Ghanem, Director of the Ministry’s Laboratories and Blood Banks Unit, reported that the crisis has reached a critical stage, with an 87% deficit in laboratory testing materials and a 74% shortage of essential medical consumables. She explained that blood gas tests have completely ground to a halt, while Complete Blood Count (CBC) and chemistry tests are at risk of stopping within days. This is compounded by a severe scarcity of blood collection tubes and screening materials for blood unit safety, alongside recurring breakdowns of dilapidated medical equipment.

The Ministry appealed to international and humanitarian organizations for urgent intervention to provide the necessary laboratory supplies and materials to ensure the continuation of diagnostic services and prevent their collapse. It emphasized that the ongoing crisis severely undermines the ability of medical teams to diagnose illnesses and monitor the wounded and patients, coming in tandem with similar catastrophic warnings previously issued by the Ministry in mid-June.

YPA