美国国家公共电台 NPR--Lebanon's hospitals are running out of medicine and staff in ongoing economic crisis

Lebanon's hospitals are running out of medicine and staff in ongoing¹ economic crisis

Transcript²

TRIPOLI and BEIRUT, Lebanon — Katya El Rahi is relieved her pregnancy³ is over.

"I had a herniated disk, and the medication I needed was hard to find,'' says the 27-year-old homemaker, who just delivered her baby and is recovering in the maternity⁴ ward⁵ of Tripoli's government hospital. "And when I did find it, it was super-expensive."

Lying alongside her newborn, Suleiman, El Rahi says she and her husband won't be having more kids anytime soon — not until her country's economy stabilizes⁶.

Lebanon is in the grips of a devastating⁷ economic crisis. For years, the government and banking⁸ sector⁹ mismanaged and squandered¹⁰ the country's cash reserves until the financial system finally collapsed¹¹ in 2019. That has triggered severe shortages of everything from food to fuel to medicines and has sent health care costs soaring, making it perilously¹² difficult for people to get treated even for serious illnesses.

The head nurse of the pediatric intensive care unit, Taha Lara, has witnessed the impact of the crisis on some of the hospital's youngest patients.

"A lot of the babies we see, the mother hasn't been to a doctor, hasn't been taken care of throughout her pregnancy or she has the baby at home," he says. "And the outcomes are worse."

Because of the lack of prenatal care, he says, he sees more newborns who are sick and weak. From time to time, some are left stranded¹³ at the hospital.

"If you had come yesterday, we had two babies — their parents had left them because they didn't have the money to take them home," he says. They didn't have the funds to pay for the additional care needed, so "they just left the babies."

Baby Suleiman was born into this crisis. His grandmother Diba Aysatado, who gazes adoringly at her grandson, says she has one simple hope for him:

"May he live to see better days than what we're living through."

A crisis that's costing lives

At Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, chief pharmacist Raida Bitar used to oversee¹⁴ a diverse inventory¹⁵ of drugs and medicines.

Now, many of the hospital's shelves, like the one for epinephrine, a treatment for severe allergic¹⁶ reactions, are nearly empty.

The shortages are so bad that she has noticed that some patients have been rationing¹⁷ treatments or skipping them altogether.

"Two days ago, we had a patient who hadn't been taking his anti-diabetic medicines and he had to have both legs amputated," says Bitar. "All the complications are coming from shortage of medications or prices have increased so much that patients can't afford them."

The shortages and the costs have hit Lebanon's cancer patients particularly hard.

"You see these people over and over for several months, and then you hear their situation has deteriorated¹⁸ — we stop seeing them, and I guess we've lost them," says Bitar.

Dr. Issam Chehade, the head of the hospital's oncology department, says there's no doubt the crisis has cost people their lives.

"This shortage of medication has led to the deterioration¹⁹ of some [cancer] patients, leading to the death of these patients," he says.

One of the patients currently in Chehade's care is 65-year-old Mohammad Halabi.

Last year, he started experiencing a strange sensation in his ears and frequent nosebleeds.

A biopsy revealed a rare form of organ cancer, near a cavity by the nose. For the last five months, the retired²⁰ plumber²¹ has been getting treated at the hospital, but it has been a strain on his finances.

"Yesterday, I bought five medications. I paid $32," he says. "When I started my treatment earlier this year, it cost me $5."

He says his friends and family have been helping²² him pay for it.

"Alhamdulillah" — thank God, he says. But it may not be enough.

Lebanon's economic turmoil²³ has also prompted an exodus²⁴ of doctors and nurses who are departing the country for more stable work abroad, leaving the country's hospitals desperately²⁵ understaffed and patients dangerously underserved.

A dwindling²⁶ number of doctors and nurses

Dr. Mahmoud Hassoun hasn't been getting much sleep lately.

The director of Rafik Hariri University Hospital, Lebanon's largest public hospital, has been scrambling²⁷ to find doctors to perform urgent surgeries, like a craniotomy on a patient who recently came in with a brain hemorrhage.

His hospital is now down to 15 doctors from the 60-some who worked here a few years ago, and about a third of the nursing staff — 128 of them — have also left since the start of the economic crisis.

"We may be obliged to close one or more departments," says Hassoun.

It's a trend playing out in hospitals across Lebanon. Approximately 3,000 nurses have left the country since October 2019, according to the nurses union, the Order of Nurses Lebanon.

Hussein Kataya, the emergency room's supervising nurse, intends to join the out-migration.

He and several other nurses and doctors say they can no longer afford the gas it takes to drive to and from work and are struggling to pay for food and electricity.

"I used to make $1,800 a month in this job, and now that salary is worth $120," says Kataya, who has taken on a second nursing job to survive. "The first opportunity I will leave. I've sent my CV to several countries."

On a chair in his office is a pile of food — cans of beans, rice, noodles. Higher-paying staff members have been donating food to junior nurses struggling to get by.

Bitar, the chief pharmacist, has also hit her limit.

"How are we going to eat? How are we going to pay the rent? The electricity costs more than my salary," she says. "If I have a chance, I'm going to leave."

The thought of leaving weighs heavily on Chehade, the oncology department physician. He says he has been grappling with it a lot lately, but he just can't bring himself to do it.

"Who will take care of these poor patients?"

1 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

4 maternity   

n.母性，母道，妇产科病房；adj.孕妇的，母性的

参考例句：

• Women workers are entitled to maternity leave with full pay.女工产假期间工资照发。
• Trainee nurses have to work for some weeks in maternity.受训的护士必须在产科病房工作数周。

5 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

6 stabilizes   

n.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的名词复数 )v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The broadbased attachment of the mesenteric root stabilizes the small bowel. 肠系膜根部基底宽阔的附着面使小肠得以稳定。 来自辞典例句
• The available supply of industrial product and produce stabilizes growth. 工业品与农产品的有效供给稳定增长。 来自互联网

7 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

8 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

9 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

10 squandered   

v.（指钱，财产等）浪费，乱花( squander的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He squandered all his money on gambling. 他把自己所有的钱都糟蹋在赌博上了。
• She felt as indignant as if her own money had been squandered. 她心里十分生气，好像是她自己的钱给浪费掉了似的。 来自飘（部分）

11 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

12 perilously   

adv.充满危险地，危机四伏地

参考例句：

• They were perilously close to the edge of the precipice. 他们离悬崖边很近，十分危险。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It'seemed to me that we had come perilously close to failure already. 对我来说，好像失败和我只有一步之遥，岌岌可危。 来自互联网

13 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

14 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

15 inventory   

n.详细目录，存货清单

参考例句：

• Some stores inventory their stock once a week.有些商店每周清点存货一次。
• We will need to call on our supplier to get more inventory.我们必须请供应商送来更多存货。

16 allergic   

adj.过敏的，变态的

参考例句：

• Alice is allergic to the fur of cats.艾丽斯对猫的皮毛过敏。
• Many people are allergic to airborne pollutants such as pollen.许多人对空气传播的污染物过敏，比如花粉。

17 rationing   

n.定量供应

参考例句：

• Wartime austerities included food rationing and shortage of fuel. 战时的艰苦包括食物配给和燃料短缺。
• Food rationing was abolished in that country long ago. 那个国家早就取消了粮食配给制。

18 deteriorated   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化，不久便去世了。
• His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化，日甚一日。

19 deterioration   

n.退化；恶化；变坏

参考例句：

• Mental and physical deterioration both occur naturally with age. 随着年龄的增长，心智和体力自然衰退。
• The car's bodywork was already showing signs of deterioration. 这辆车的车身已经显示出了劣化迹象。

20 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

21 plumber   

n.(装修水管的)管子工

参考例句：

• Have you asked the plumber to come and look at the leaking pipe?你叫管道工来检查漏水的管子了吗？
• The plumber screwed up the tap by means of a spanner.管子工用板手把龙头旋紧。

22 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

23 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

24 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。

25 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

26 dwindling   

adj.逐渐减少的v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The number of wild animals on the earth is dwindling. 地球上野生动物的数量正日渐减少。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority. 他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。 来自辞典例句

27 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》