Hospitals in Mogadishu

Somalia is a country that is in a state of continuous warfare. Violence and brutality has plagued the country since the downfall of the central government in 1991. Since then competing factions fight amongst each other for power and control. Shootings and bombings occur on a daily basis in the middle of popular cities. Often, innocent bystanders get caught in the crossfire between opposing clans. Many of the injured will flee to hospitals in order to receive medical attention. Despite the chaos in Somalia and the lack of medical care available to Somalians, there are a few functioning hospitals, especially in the countries capital city, Mogadishu. Each hospital that is in operation in Mogadishu faces numerous problems and set backs on a daily basis.

Keysaney Hospital is a hospital that is located in Northern Mogadishu. It has been functioning in order to provide medical assistance to war wounded patients since 1992. The hospital contains 65 hospital beds, and since 1992 it has been responsible for treating over 60,000 people injured by gunshot wounds. Everyday, the hospital treats more then ten people who have been injured by gun shots or by explosives, and at least three more people who have been stabbed. They have been treating many civilians, including women and children who get caught in the cross fire between opposing clans. The hospital is technically very well prepared to treat the wounded patients that come to them for medical assistance. They have all the tools and the medication that they need in order to treat patients. The doctors and nurses at Keysaney Hospital have become used to working in a hospital in which they must treat numerous war wounded patients daily. Medina Hospital is the largest health care facility in Mogadishu. Often these hospitals are faced with the problem of running out of the room that they need in order to accommodate patients. So many people are injured from day to day that hospitals often run out of space to put the wounded. In the past few years there have been numerous occasions in which patients had to be lain in the shade underneath a tree outside because the hospitals were so overcrowded. The continuous state of chaos in Somalia often makes hospitals an unsafe place for doctors and nurses to work. In 2004, Mogadishu’s only free hospital was shutdown while gunmen threatened the staff. Earlier Doctor Bashir Sheikh had been forced to remove a woman’s womb in order to save her life. As a result the family of the woman sent the gunmen to the hospital and demanded 50 camels, which is the compensation that is offered when a woman dies. The family maintained that the woman was as good as dead because she could no longer have children. As a result, many women and children who needed medical attention could not be admitted to the hospital. Hospitals also face the problem of keeping the war wounded safely in the hospital until they are out of danger and ready to be released. It is difficult for hospitals to convince patients to stay because they fear getting arrested. Keysaney Hospital estimates that they released about 500 patients who were not ready to be released because they refused to stay. There is also a lack of specialists in Somalian hospitals, such as orthopedic specialists. Therefore, many individuals are going without the treatment that they need.

Doctors Somalia

Since 1991, Somalia has been a war torn country in which opposing clans take part in armed warfare on a continual basis. Violence and death is a reality that the Somalian people are forced to live with. Shootings and bombings are an everyday occurrence in Somalia, especially around the capital city of Mogadishu. However, a recent census showed that only about 9% of the population had access to medical treatment, whereas 91% of the population did not have access to a doctor. In a country where people are the victims of violence everyday, it is essential that injured individuals have the ability to see a doctor. Many Somalians are afraid to venture outside of their homes and they will not seek the help of a doctor, even in emergency situations. In Somalia the majority of medical assistance is provided by foreign doctors and organizations, as there are few educated Somalian doctors in the country today. One organization that is a leader in Somalian relief efforts is Doctors Without Borders.

Doctors Without Borders has been operating in Somalia since the collapse of the government and the outbreak of the civil war in 1991. They provide access to medical care and assistance to individuals who are in severe need of attention from a doctor. To date, Doctors Without Borders has provided health care to thousands of individuals in Somalia. This organization is the main provider of free medical service throughout the country. They have maintained a staff of 1,452 individuals in Somalia and they have another staff consisting of 104 people in Nairobi, who travel to Somalia and offer assistance when security will allow it. Doctors Without Borders provides primary health care to the people of Somalia, as well as treats people who have been displaced or are suffering from malnutrition. They offer treatment and perform surgery on individuals who have been injured by violence due to the ongoing civil war. Doctors Without Borders also assists in distributing water and relief supplies throughout the country. In 2008 the doctors from this organization provided the people of Somalia with 727, 428 outpatient consultations and they treated 55,000 women for ante-natal care. 4,000 people who were suffering from malaria were able to receive treatment from a doctor. They also provided 1,556 Somalians with tuberculosis treatment. Doctors Without Borders distributed food and provided medical care to 35,000 people who were suffering from nutrition and also administered 82,174 vaccinations. Having access to a doctor is something that is taken for granted by many people living in developed nations. For the people living with constantly appalling conditions in Somalia, the organization is Doctors Without Borders is providing them with an invaluable service. Because of these doctors the people of Somalia are able to cope with illnesses, wounds and infections that may have otherwise killed them. Each doctor that is working in Somalia is risking his/her life everyday to help improve the lives of the individuals who are living in this unstable country.

Somalian Physicians

Somalia is a country that is notorious for violence and that has been in the midst of a civil war since 1991. Armed combat and shootings are a daily occurrence in Somalia, especially in and around the capital city of Mogadishu. It is very common for ordinary citizens get stuck in the crossfire between waring clans. The access to medical care is very poor throughout Somalia and many people never see a physician. Physicians are essential in a country that is devastated by ferocity and brutality. The 300,000 Somalians that are suffering from starvation and malnutrition are in need of the medical attention of a physician. Many of these displaced individuals attempt to flee to neighboring countries for help, but they are denied access and not offered help. Many Somalians die near these borders or in makeshift camps. They do not have access to the necessary resources that they need in order to survive, such as water. People who suffer fatal injuries do to the violence of the civil war do not receive the medical attention that they need. This is often because there are no doctors available to care for them.

On Dec 4, 2008 twenty men and women graduated from a Somalian medical school in Mogadishu and achieved their dreams of becoming a physician. Each of these individuals are extremely exceptional. They risked their lives everyday, dogging bullets in order to get to the University, because they know that Somalia is in desperate need of physicians. While they were completing their studies two of their fellow classmate were killed by gunfire that occurred due to the civil war. These students were the first group of physicians to graduate from a medical school in Somalia in two decades. The program was a six year program that was dedicated to teaching each of the students the knowledge and tools that they would need in order to become a physician. Earlier in 2008 the city of Mogadishu received their first public ambulance system in eighteen years, which will allows physicians to reach individuals who are in need of immediate medical attention more quickly. It is likely, due to the conditions surrounding the education of the students and the state of the government, that their degrees will not be valid in other countries and will only let them practice in Somalia. However, the introduction of each physician into society is invaluable to the Somali people.

Despite the dangerous conditions in Somalia, physicians continue to work in the country and provide medical assistance to thousands of sick and injured Somalians. The United Nations Populations Fund currently has physicians stationed in Somalia in order to provide health care to woman who are pregnant and assist in delivering children and ensuring that births are safe. Doctors Without Borders also has many physicians working throughout Somalia to help treat sick and injured individuals, as well as provide medical treatment to Somalians suffering from malnutrition and famine. Every physician who is working in Somalia is risking his/her life on a daily basis to improve the life of others.