By Libya Herald reporters.
Tripoli, 23 October 2017:
Ghat hospital said today it had been overwhelmed as it tried to cope with an influx of 50 food-poisoning cases because it lacked trained staff and sufficient supplies.
The victims are reported to have all dined at a pizzeria in the town. Hospital medical director Abdul Razzaq Al-Saghir told Chinese news agency Xinhua that more cases were expected.
It is understood that there were insufficient IV fluids and medication available to cope with the rush of patients. Nor were there sufficient medical personnel to deal with the large numbers arriving overnight in the emergency room.
The hospital has not said how many patients have been kept in and if any of them are in a dangerous condition.
Last December Presidency Council head Faiez Serraj visited the town and promised that something would be done about the lack of basic services. The hospital’s troubles became serious when its Korean doctors decided https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/01/15/ghat-hospital-in-crisis-as-korean-doctors-quit/ to leave in January 2016, apparently because they had not been paid and from security concerns. Since then surgeons from Tripoli have paid flying visits trying to deal with urgent cases that could not be sent to the capital.
