Conflict hitting S. Sudanese doctors, hospitals

By Parach Mach

JUBA, South Sudan (AA) – The wave of insecurity which rocked South Sudan in July has severely damaged the country’s healthcare system, local doctors have warned.

Now patients are complaining they cannot get treatment during night hours, with some women even being forced to give birth while trying to find an open hospital.

The young country’s crumbling infrastructure means accessing medical services in the capital Juba has become a nightmare. Many health facilities -- including the government’s main hospital -- stop operating after daytime with some closing as early as 7 p.m.

Many emergency cases have to wait until dawn.

Dr. Jamal Wodu, who runs a private clinic in Juba, told Anadolu Agency the instability was growing:

"The political atmosphere determines everything; it influences socioeconomic and other facets of life. The volatile political situation and worsening insecurity has disrupted service delivery.”

Wodu said medical staff had stopped working at night amid growing fears of insecurity, adding doctors had experienced “several attacks”. He called on the government to step in and protect medical workers.

“Our clinic was attacked by gunmen; they robbed everything, including money, and this has discouraged us from working at night,” Wodu said.

South Sudan descended into war in December 2013 after President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar of plotting a coup.

The fighting pushed the country deeper into crisis, destroying crops, homes and the nation's minimal infrastructure. Hospitals were torched and patients massacred in their beds. Foreign medical teams and aid workers were forced to evacuate.

- Hospitals closed -

Some Juba residents now say that they pray not to get ill at night.

Marial Wen Deng, 28, described how he nearly died after falling sick at night: "It’s a bad experience. I nearly said ‘bye to my life in August this year when I fell badly ill at 3 a.m. I had to be taken to the hospital.

“Unfortunately, we could hardly find a clinic or hospital which was open. I stayed in the Juba Teaching Hospital until 7 a.m., when the doctor came.”

Fighting between the South Sudanese government and opposition forces loyal to Machar has significantly damaged seven of the country’s 25 public hospitals, with five of them now completely non-functional according to the Ministry of Health.

Pregnant women are unable to access maternity wards and there are instances of some giving birth while being driven around Juba searching for an open hospital or clinic.

One such woman was Keji Richard. She told Anadolu Agency: “I delivered in the car after almost three hours of fruitless driving around Juba with my husband. All the hospitals and private clinics were closed.

She was critical of doctors who did not attend critical nighttime cases: “I cannot understand how these doctors just ignore emergencies and prefer to sleep the whole night, yet it is their profession. They should change this behavior.”

James Bol, 25, another resident of Juba, said it was bad that the government did not think it was necessary for people to have access to medical facilities at any hour:

“Those people who get sick in daytime are lucky. They can go to a nearby clinic or hospital and get services whereas those who fall sick at night will have their fate decided by their body’s immune system.”

Earlier this month he developed a severe fever but when relatives took him to a nearby clinic “we found the gate closed and I couldn’t get treatment”.

“We knocked several times but no one opened. It was very bad,” Bol complained.

South Sudan’s health ministry said combined efforts needed to be put in place to stem the spread of insecurity throughout the country.

Makur Koryom, ministry undersecretary, said the government was working closely with implementing agencies to improve the deteriorating health situation.

According to him, the instability made it impossible for health workers to operate at night or access some of the remotest parts of the country:

“Despite government efforts to [supply] health services to the public, the recent spate of violence has derailed the progress. Many health workers find it troubling working at night because of fear of being attacked.”