Burns Victim - Lubna’s Story
9 September 2010
(MAP) Lubna is just 2 years old, yet when we visit her she is lying alone in an adult's intensive care bed in the Al-Shiffa Burns Unit where she has been for the past 2 months.
Her parents, like most of Gaza's families, are largely reliant on a power generator. Fuel shortages, a product of the continuing Israeli blockade, limit electricity to just a few hours a day. On the day that Lubna was injured, her father was putting fuel into their generator in their home when it exploded leaving all three of them with serious burns. As a child, Lubna suffered the worst injuries with over 50% of her small body burnt.
Standing next to Lubna's bed, it is easy to feel helpless. As the daily conditions deteriorate, more and more families are exposed to dangers and risks associated with the blockade. Lubna was fortunate to be able to reach specialist emergency treatment in time. The hospital that is treating her is the only burns unit for the entire population of the Gaza Strip and it has just four intensive care unit beds.
Due to lack of funds and the problems of the blockade hospitals are struggling to keep their stocks up. Dr Nafiz heads up the Unit and managed the tragic flow of burns victims during the war on Gaza 18 months ago. He now fears for the sustainability of the unit, which has a disproportionate number of child burns patients, and is relied on to offer life saving treatment with dwindling resources:
"For skin grafts, we need surgical blades that cost just $8-$12. Yet we are reaching the point where I am telling my staff to clean and sterilise used blades and keep them, because I cannot be sure that we will have enough if another emergency situation arises."
MAP has pledged to support the upgrade of Al Shiffa Burns Unit and ensure that it has the necessary drugs, equipment and training to cope with the heavy burden that it bears.
The nature of burns means that recovery can be slow and painful. The ward is small and has no place for the younger patients to play or exercise. They are confined to the ward for the duration of their stay. Because of this, MAP is also raising funds to build a child's playroom for the unit. It is a small investment that will make a huge difference to Dr Nafiz's young patients.
It has been a long and lonely path to recovery for Lubna but on the day we visited her, she was waiting to return home with her parents. The treatment that she has been able to receive has given her the best possible chance of recovery. However she faces an uncertain future . The rationing of fuel means that clean water supply is haphazard; refrigeration for medicines and food, light and warmth are all compromised by the power cuts. For a recovering burns patient, who is prone to infection, these all pose serious risks.
It is for these reasons that MAP continues to call for an immediate end to the blockade of Gaza.
