DAMASCUS, Dec 17 (NNN-SANA) – Syrian health authorities, activated an emergency hospital, established recently, to deal with the increasing number of patients, Ahmad al-Dumairia, head of Syrian hospitals, said, yesterday.
Established at a tennis court inside the Faiha sports stadium, north of the Syrian capital, Damascus, the emergency hospital is equipped with 120 beds, 300 oxygen cylinders, as well as, 50 Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines, in addition to a qualified and trained medical team.
The hospital, established in Aug, as part of the preparation for the second wave of the pandemic, received the first batch of patients on Tuesday.
The health authorities are also ready to designate another tennis court to accommodate additional 120 patients.
“The goal of establishing the hospital is to reduce the pressure on other hospitals,” he added
Meanwhile, al-Dumairia said, the health sector in Syria is facing difficulties, as a result of Western sanctions imposed on Syria, noting that the economic siege is creating difficulties, in terms of securing spare parts for the oxygen cylinders and other medical equipment.
Tawfiq Hasaba, director of the emergency department at Syrian Health Ministry, said earlier, that, the number of officially registered cases of COVID-19 increased five times since mid-Nov.
The number of infections the ministry is declaring, only includes cases tested positive as a result of the PCR test, said Tawfiq Hasaba, noting that, the figures who receive treatment in the clinics and houses double.
There are currently more than 1,200 people who are being monitored and awaiting results of the PCR tests. He indicated that more than 80 percent of the cases are mild symptoms, similar to the seasonal flu.
On Monday, the ‘Government Team,’ tasked with adopting measures to confront COVID-19 in Syria, decided to tighten the restrictions in public places by imposing the masks on all people in public transpiration and government establishments.
During a meeting, headed by Prime Minister, Hussein Arnous, the team decided to shut tourist facilities and restaurants, which don’t adhere to the safety measures.
Since Mar, a total of 9,452 cases have been officially reported in government-controlled areas in Syria with the actual number expected to be much higher.– NNN-SANA
