As Iran faces power provide challenges as a result of rising temperatures, experiences of energy outages at medical facilities have raised issues in regards to the security and continuity of well being companies throughout the nation.
On July 24, Tejarat News reported {that a} energy outage occurred at Khomeini Maharat Hospital within the central province, affecting 18 sufferers present process hemodialysis. A companion of the affected person described the seriousness of the scenario as follows: “Power minimize in dialysis machine causes extreme shock to the affected person. The blood faraway from the affected person’s physique for purification is introduced again with the assistance of this machine. When the facility is minimize off, this cycle stops. The outage lasted greater than quarter-hour, throughout which some workers operated by hand the dialysis machine to reduce danger to sufferers.
This incident shouldn’t be remoted. On July 27, the rector of Gilan University of Medical Sciences introduced the dismissal of the director of Pirouz Lahijan Hospital following an identical energy outage.
The disaster extends past drugs. Iran’s Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian warned on July 27 that the warmth wave has considerably elevated electrical energy consumption, making electrical energy manufacturing and provide harder. The common annual development fee in electrical energy consumption, beforehand round 4%, is now greater than 8% and is predicted to achieve 9% inside the subsequent few days.
Tejarat News highlighted that energy outages in hospitals can result in failure of essential gear in essential departments resembling ICUs, CCUs, and dialysis models, particularly affecting small cities. The information group emphasised the necessity for dependable backup mills in medical facilities, particularly contemplating that many public hospitals’ gear is outdated.
The unprecedented warmth pressured the closure of presidency workplaces, workplaces and banks throughout Iran on July 28. The nation’s meteorological company predicts that almost all of Iran will likely be hit by a heatwave from the second half of subsequent week.
Mostafa Rajavi Mashhadi, CEO of Tabanir, stated on July 25 that the nation’s energy grid is underneath double stress as temperatures rise, on common 1.5 to 2 levels Celsius greater than on the similar time final yr. stated.
Emergency physician Mehrdad Moniri warned that authorities hospitals’ getting old mills and energy outages may very well be catastrophic. He recommended that as an alternative of opening new hospitals with out adequate staffing, the Ministry of Health ought to allocate funds to equip current public hospitals.
These power-related points in healthcare amenities usually are not new. Similar incidents have been reported in recent times, together with an 11-hour energy outage at Raji Ahvaz Hospital in June 2023 and one other incident at Qassem Soleimani Hospital in Twiserkan in August 2023.