Gaza Health Ministry launches distress call: Lives of 225,000 blood pressure patients in imminent danger

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip issued a strong warning coinciding with World Hypertension Day, confirming that the lives of approximately 225,000 patients are directly threatened. Medical sources explained that this disease, known as the 'silent killer,' is spreading in an environment lacking the most basic healthcare provisions, which portends an unprecedented rise in sudden death cases among those affected.

The Ministry stated in an urgent press release that the severe shortage of essential medications for treating blood vessels represents the biggest obstacle to stabilizing patient conditions, especially with the general drug deficit reaching 50%. The complete cessation of regular check-ups for long periods has also deprived patients of the opportunity to control the disease before it worsens, turning stable cases into critical ones lacking even minimal follow-up.

Sources indicated that the systematic destruction of primary healthcare centers has led to a complete absence of monitoring and early diagnosis, leaving patients to face their fate without medical coverage. This health collapse coincides with the lack of healthy, balanced food and living in a polluted environment that weakens the immunity of exhausted bodies, thereby exacerbating the burden of the disease on the most vulnerable groups in Gazan society.

In a related context, medical teams stressed that repeated and forced displacement under the constant bombardment has created severe psychological and nervous pressures that increase the likelihood of strokes and heart attacks. The spread of poverty, unemployment, and food insecurity has also contributed to accelerating the pace of fatal complications, at a time when the deficit in medical consumables has reached 57% and laboratory materials around 71%.

The Ministry of Health renewed its urgent call to the international community and UN institutions for immediate intervention to save thousands of lives before it's too late, demanding the provision of urgent shipments of chronic disease medications. The Ministry affirmed that the continued destruction of the healthcare system requires serious international action to improve living and environmental conditions and stop the bleeding in the health sector, which has become unable to meet patients' needs.

High blood pressure has become a ticking time bomb, claiming patients' lives without prior warning amidst the absence of care and diagnosis.