DaysofPal – Gaza’s Ministry of Health has warned that thousands of patients with glaucoma are on the brink of preventable blindness as specialized eye care in the Strip collapses under extreme shortages of equipment and essential medicines.
According to the ministry, widespread failures in diagnostic and surgical devices have made it nearly impossible to perform critical eye procedures. Long-broken machines, power instability, and a lack of spare parts have created a massive backlog of patients awaiting urgent interventions.
At the same time, drug stocks dedicated to ophthalmology have nearly run out. The ministry says around 4,000 glaucoma patients are now at imminent risk of losing their sight due to the absence of medication that controls intraocular pressure and the inability to carry out the required surgeries.
“Specialized eye care is reaching a point of total breakdown,” the ministry said, urging all relevant bodies to expedite the entry of diagnostic equipment, surgical tools, and essential medications to prevent irreversible harm to thousands of patients.
The crisis in eye care is part of a broader medical catastrophe sweeping Gaza’s shattered health sector. Ismail Al-Thawabta, head of the Government Media Office, described the pharmaceutical situation as “catastrophic,” noting that Israel is blocking the entry of around 800 types of medicines. This, he said, has already contributed to the deaths of 42 percent of kidney patients who could no longer access treatment.
What trickles in through limited aid deliveries, he added, meets only 5 percent of Gaza’s actual medical needs.The wider medical system is facing a shortage exceeding 70 percent in basic supplies, while warehouses have reached “zero stock” of many essential medical devices after Israeli attacks destroyed hundreds of pieces of equipment.
More than 350,000 patients with chronic illnesses are struggling to obtain medication, and mortality rates across the Strip have risen to six and a half times their pre-war levels.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has also warned that restrictions on border crossings are blocking life-saving medical responses. Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, WHO’s representative, said the entry of international medical teams and supplies has become “extremely difficult,” with shipments, including intensive-care and anesthesia equipment, frequently delayed or rejected.
These barriers, he said, are preventing the stabilization of a health system that is already past its breaking point.
The collapse of medical care has also triggered the spread of dangerous, long-term health consequences. WHO has documented an unprecedented rise in meningitis cases and Guillain-Barré syndrome, illnesses that require treatment largely unavailable under current conditions.
At the same time, widespread hunger is deepening the crisis. The World Food Programme reports that Gaza is experiencing record levels of food insecurity and malnutrition, with 227 hunger-related deaths, including 103 children.
Health officials warn that without immediate intervention, the Strip will face a wave of irreversible blindness, a tragedy that could have been prevented with basic medications and functional equipment.
“This is not a medical inevitability,” one official said. “It is the result of a system deprived of the tools required to keep people alive and preserve their vision.”
Shortlink for this post: https://daysofpalestine.ps/?p=69943
