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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – As coronavirus cases skyrocket in Erbil, health authorities have prepared another major hospital to take in patients suffering from severe symptoms of the virus.
The West Erbil Emergency Hospital has been fully emptied and from today will only admit COVID-19 patients, Dr. Karwan Yasin, in charge of the health facility, told Rudaw.
"We will not accept any other patients," he said.
The 100-bed capacity hospital has so far received five patients who are now in intensive care, according to Dr. Bzhar Musa, spokesperson for Erbil's health department.
As Erbil struggles with the surge in COVID-19 cases, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Saturday allocated one billion dinars in relief funds.
The allocation, equal to around $840,000, was made upon an order by Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, according to a statement from the KRG health ministry released on Saturday night.
The KRG had already given funds to all four of the Kurdistan Region provinces to boost health department coronavirus testing capabilities and medical supply levels.
Rizgari Hospital, Erbil's Central Emergency Hospital, Emirati Hospital in Bahirka sub-district and West Emergency are the four hospitals designed to receive coronavirus patients in Erbil city.
But Erbil's ability to fight the pandemic has come under particular scrutiny in recent days, after a shortage of medical grade oxygen at Rizgari Hospital, caused by a late delivery, was blamed by relatives of coronavirus patients for the deaths of four people on Thursday.
According to the latest data from the KRG health ministry, 4,737 people in Erbil have been infected with COVID-19 virus so far. Of this number, 3,097 people have recovered and 131 have died.
With the spread of the virus unrelenting and hospitals overwhelmed, some people have bought their own oxygen supply for treatment at home, causing sales of oxygen tanks in Erbil to spike.
The health ministry warned weeks ago that it could run into a shortage of medical supplies if the Kurdistan Region continues to see case numbers at their current level.
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