A resource deficit or a special “empire”?

The Syrian city of Homs has always been for the people of Hermel and its district the market and the park, and most importantly, the doctor and the hospital. The city in the far north of Bekaa remained that way until the outbreak of the Syrian crisis in 2011. Many of the Hermelians are arguing among themselves, to this day, how their medical records were lost in the hospitals and clinics of the neighboring city. Syria. The opening of the Hermel Government Hospital in 2006, nine years after laying the first stone in May 1997, did not change the lives and spending of the people of Hermel. Homs continued to be their destination. The dream hospital did not make a difference in reducing the neglect of health that plagues the region. Even today, the last thing that comes to mind, when an accident occurs or someone gets sick, is going to the government hospital. They usually pass there on their way to a hospital in Baalbek, Zahle or Beirut, depending on the severity of the case and their tolerance.

Several stakeholders who accompanied the construction of the building (with Kuwaiti funds) claim that the basic plan was to establish a high-level health building, “However, the neglect it suffered, like other government hospitals, contributed for 14 years to prevent it from playing the expected role. According to medical sources familiar with the reality of the hospital, confirming that this “building” suffers from “the absence of the necessary medical equipment, which prevents the performance of medium and difficult operations. The hospital has the minimum requirements for hospitalization ”. This raises questions about the role that the hospital is supposed to play in the “Crown era” and the astonishing healthcare sector, and where all eyes are on the preparation of government hospitals and the effectiveness of their management.
According to figures from the National Disaster Management Operations Chamber, the total number of HIV infections in Hermel has reached about sixty since February 21. Of these, only three cases were admitted to the government hospital, but they did not “stay” there for long, as they were soon transferred to the Baalbek Government Hospital. Given that the hospital has the minimum requirements for the treatment of HIV infections (CRP tests, hypothermia and a limited number of intensive care beds), the question is: Why is the hospital not meeting the minimum that the capacities available allow it?
In contact with “Al-Akhbar”, the hospital director, Dr. Simon Nasereddin, explained that the “Government Hermel” has 24 designated beds for Corona cases, of which four are for intensive care. However, he noted that the Baalbek Government Hospital, unlike Hermel Hospital, has the necessary equipment to perform the pcr tests, “so we send samples there for testing, and it is preferred that some stay there.” This contradicts data from the Ministry of Health, which confirms that the hospital has the capacity to perform PCR tests (although the equipment in Baalbek, the government, may be larger). In the same context, medical sources in the region assure that the “Government Hermel” was “among the first hospitals that were equipped to face the Corona virus, but its administration refused to open its doors for the purpose of its director!” . The irony that reinforces this issue is that there are currently no casualties occupying any of that family. The same sources make a nod to the hospital’s performance channel, which has been around for 14 years, and has turned it into an “empire and a private company.” It alleges the existence of large files of economic waste in the hospital “and the Ministry of Health knows them”, starting with false hiring and favoritism, going through the drug file “where the data confirm the exchange of drugs assigned to the hospital with certain pharmacies ”, To the manipulation of the documentation of the medical records of patients and suspicions related to purchases. Heating oil, medical supplies, equipment, and other “common” drain doors are under political protection.

Most of the injured are from the city and are transferred to the Baalbek Government Hospital.

For his part, Nasir al-Din responds to all this by stating that his “successful management of the hospital in recent years has allowed it to be the only non-debtor hospital among public hospitals that retroactively pays its fees and pays the salaries of its employees regularly, in addition to having an economic reserve that makes it a firm Crisis. As for the accusations, “they are often personal.” While those who disagree with Nasir al-Din ask, “How can a government hospital that does not have average medical facilities at the very least make a profit?” Questions do arise about the minutes of the four-member board of directors, though, as they are “like daily notes and reports devoid of major financial decisions. The director is alone with all financial decisions, from those related to the cafeteria to those related to the financial ceiling of the hospital.
In addition to the accusations, there is a discussion related to the basic failure in the management of the hospital, according to some hospital officials, by merging the positions of president and director, such as, “How can the legislator be the one who cares about implementing the decisions? “

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