Gaza Hospitals on Verge of Collapse amid Severe Shortages and Overcrowding

GAZA, MINA – Hospitals still functioning in the Gaza Strip are at risk of shutting down at any moment due to extreme overcrowding, a sharp rise in critical cases, and devastating shortages of essential supplies, according to medical sources.

Currently, only 45 out of 312 operating rooms remain functional, significantly hindering the ability to perform urgent and complex surgeries. Inpatient wards, intensive care units, and emergency departments are operating well beyond capacity, Wafa reported.

The crisis is exacerbated by a critical shortage of medicines and medical supplies, especially affecting cancer and heart patients. Reports confirm that 47% of essential medicines are completely depleted, and 65% of necessary medical supplies are unavailable.

In addition, only 9 of 34 oxygen stations are still partially working, which fails to meet hospital needs. Diagnostic imaging equipment is largely non-functional, and fuel shortages are threatening the operation of 49 hospital generators, crippling vital medical departments.

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Patients requiring treatment abroad are being blocked from leaving the Gaza Strip, resulting in the deaths of 338 cancer patients while awaiting referrals. An estimated 11,000 patients were denied treatment after specialized centers were destroyed, and 513 more died due to restrictions on travel for medical care.

The situation is especially dire for kidney failure patients, with 41% reported dead, while patients in northern Gaza face a total absence of healthcare following the destruction of hospitals in the area.

Blood banks are nearly empty, and community donation efforts have faltered due to widespread anemia and malnutrition, particularly among children and infants, as a result of the lack of therapeutic milk, clean water, and food.

Since the beginning of 2025, the health sector has recorded over 59,000 cases of bloody diarrhea, 254,000 respiratory infections, and 337 cases of meningitis, of which 259 are viral. Patients with chronic illnesses lack proper medical follow-up and medications, increasing the risk of severe complications.

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Medical authorities warn that rising summer temperatures, water shortages, and lack of hygiene supplies are creating ideal conditions for epidemics. Vaccination coverage has dropped to 80%, with vaccines, including for polio, being blocked from entering the region.

Medical sources stress that ongoing Israeli aggression and the occupation’s obstruction of international humanitarian efforts are pushing Gaza’s health sector to the brink of total collapse, endangering the lives of thousands of patients and wounded civilians. []

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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