Deir Ezzor – Obadah al-Sheikh

The number of hepatitis A cases is increasing in the countryside of Deir Ezzor, where the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) is in control, amid the deteriorating conditions of the healthcare sector and the lack of support from the Health Committee for the majority of public hospitals.

Many cases of this disease have concentrated in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, as medical sources active in the region told Enab Baladi that the cause of those cases is the contamination of drinking water.

Patients resort to hospitals in al-Hasakah and Raqqa because the hospitals in the countryside of Deir Ezzor lack medical specializations, such as digestive, pulmonary, ophthalmology, and neurology, in addition to suffering from a shortage of resources and equipment.

Travel and high costs

Abdul Qader al-Zanad (28 years old) was unable to obtain the treatments and medications to alleviate the symptoms of his hepatitis from the health centers affiliated with the Health Committee in the Deir Ezzor Civil Council under the Autonomous Administration.

The young man headed to private hospitals in al-Hasakah and underwent treatment at his own expense after one of the doctors in the countryside of Deir Ezzor gave him incorrect medications unsuitable for him, which led to a deterioration in his health condition, according to him.

The cost of treatment in al-Hasakah ranges between 1.5 million and 2.5 million Syrian pounds (approximately $150), covering medical consultations, imaging, and tests, while the transportation cost from Deir Ezzor to al-Hasakah is about 800,000 Syrian pounds round trip.

Some patients are limited to the available treatment due to the inability to afford treatment at private hospitals or to travel to other provinces.

What is hepatitis A?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), hepatitis A can cause illness ranging from mild to severe.

The infection with the hepatitis A virus is transmitted through consuming contaminated food and water or through direct contact with an infected person. The risk of infection is associated with the lack of safe water and poor sanitation and hygiene (such as dirty and contaminated hands).

Most infected individuals recover fully, gaining lifelong immunity; however, a very small number of those infected can die from fulminant hepatitis, according to the WHO.

More than 900 cases in 40 days

According to a statistic obtained by Enab Baladi from the early warning and epidemiological surveillance system of the Future Organization working in the field of epidemics in northeastern Syria, during September and October, 232 cases of hepatitis A were recorded in the first week of October in the reporting centers in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, while the number of cases recorded in September was 732.

According to a doctor working in the system, this number reflects an increase in infections and is part of the cases; it does not represent the actual number. Laboratory tests for some of these cases showed positive results for the hepatitis A virus, and it is noticeable that the weekly number of cases has reached a record high.

A specialist in digestive and internal diseases (who preferred not to be named for security concerns), working in his private clinic in al-Hasakah, told Enab Baladi that, daily for the past two months, there has been a significant influx of cases from the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, primarily due to water contamination.

Water contamination

Dr. Jalal al-Khalid, a general doctor in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, told Enab Baladi that the spread of the disease in the countryside of Deir Ezzor is due to water contamination and its lack of treatment.

He mentioned that the methods of treatment include adhering to medical prescriptions, drinking sterilized and clean water, and avoiding foods that may exacerbate liver inflammation in the body, such as dairy products and others.

Enab Baladi contacted the Health Committee in Deir Ezzor affiliated with AANES, but did not receive a response by the time this report was published.

Lack of personnel and supplies

A doctor at al-Basira General Hospital in Deir Ezzor (who preferred not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media) told Enab Baladi that public hospitals suffer from a lack of medical supplies and medications and do not provide treatment for some cases due to the unavailability of their necessary medications.

He added that the hospital lacks any type of medication, pointing out that the region as a whole suffers from a shortage of medications and medical equipment due to inadequate funding from the Health Committee.

The healthcare sector in the Deir Ezzor countryside under the control of AANES suffers from a lack of equipment and medical personnel, as cases of bacterial diseases occasionally resurface.

Many medical specialties are absent from the region, particularly neurology and cardiac surgeries, and doctors face continuous threats that push them to leave the area in search of a safer place to continue their work.

Previously, Dr. Bakr al-Sayed Ahbash, who works in the town of al-Sa’wa west of Deir Ezzor, stated in a previous interview with Enab Baladi that the total number of doctors in the Deir Ezzor countryside working in all specialties has reached 250 registered with AANES.

He clarified that the region suffers not only from a shortage of personnel and equipment but also from a lack of medications, in addition to insufficient equipment in some medical laboratories.