Consultant Pediatrician, Head of Gaza Neonatal network Dr. Nabil Al Barqouni, expressed his concern about the repercussions of the power shut down for (120) newborns in nurseries in Gaza Strip hospitals.
Noting that the plant’s shut down because of a lack of diesel fuel, will drastically reduce the meager supply of electricity which hospitals in Gaza receive, and that will directly affect seven neonatal nurseries in the strip hospitals, which can accommodate 135 incubators.
Dr. Al-Barqouni said that the frequent power cuts and the use of alternative energy cause damage to devices such as incubators, resuscitators, and ventilators for newborns, which threatens the lives of newborns and sometimes leads to death.
He explained that the fluctuation in alternative energy generators represented in electrical generators and solar energy does not give adequate energy to the incubators’ due to the sudden decrease and increase in energy, indicating that these devices are highly sensitive and need to be reprogrammed according to the newborn condition.