Officials from the Herat Regional Hospital have verified an increase in respiratory illnesses within the province. They report that numerous individuals visit the hospital daily due to contracting these illnesses, and some are hospitalized due to the severity of their condition.
Dawood Hashemi, the head of the General Admission Ward at the Herat Regional Hospital, reveals that in January of this year, the hospital received a daily influx of 300 to 350 individuals, with 25 percent of them suffering from respiratory illnesses.
The head of the General Admission Ward at the Herat Regional Hospital adds: “Respiratory illnesses comprise approximately 25 percent of cases. In January this year, according to the statistics we have received, we had 1,504 hospitalized patients, and around 386 of them were cases of respiratory illnesses.”
Mr. Hashemi attributes the increase in these illnesses to drought and air pollution. He says, “Air pollution. The diseases can be in these pollutants or gases are that scattered in the air people consume daily.”
Residents of Herat are also concerned about the rise in respiratory illnesses. They say that following the prolonged droughts and increased dust storms, respiratory illnesses have also surged.
Abdulrahim, a resident of Kushk Rabat-e-Sangi district, has visited the Herat Regional Hospital for treatment of a respiratory illness. He says, “There’s a lot of dust in our area this year, it’s dry, and there hasn’t been any snow or rain. Almost every day, if it’s not dusty, it’s windy. I’ve been suffering a lot from shortness of breath. I came to the hospital, and the doctor says I need to be hospitalized for a few nights.”
Shir Ahmad, from the residents of the Darwaza-e Kandahar area of Herat city, has also been hospitalized at the Herat Regional Hospital in this province due to a respiratory illness. Speaking to the Hasht-e Subh Daily, he says, “The amount of dust has increased significantly, particularly with the onset of winter when households rely on heaters and resort to burning whatever is available. The primary concern and source of illness for many are the communal public bathrooms emitting noxious fumes, despite repeated complaints that went unaddressed. I visited the doctor multiple times, and although he advised avoiding polluted air, my condition deteriorated, leading me to seek treatment at the hospital. I have been hospitalized for three nights.”
It is worth mentioning that officials at the Herat Regional Hospital and the residents of this province express concern over the increase in respiratory illnesses. According to the statistics of the World Health Organization (WHO), in January of this year, 383 individuals died in Afghanistan due to respiratory illnesses.
The World Health Organization report, released on Sunday, February 4, states that during this period, close to 84,000 cases of acute respiratory illness have been recorded in Afghanistan.
According to the statistics provided by the organization, from the 1st of January to the 27th of this month, 160,756 cases of acute respiratory infections have been recorded in Afghanistan, with 383 fatalities due to this illness in 34 provinces of Afghanistan.
The World Health Organization has stated that the current recorded average of this illness is higher compared to the same period in the years 2020 to 2022. According to the organization, 62.9 percent of those affected by this illness are children under five years old, and in total, 49.3 percent are women and girls.
Based on the statistics of the World Health Organization, the number of cases of acute respiratory illness in Afghanistan in 2023 exceeded 1,384,000, with 61.5 percent of them being children under five years old. Additionally, in that year, 2,798 individuals across Afghanistan lost their lives due to acute respiratory illnesses.
The World Health Organization also states that currently, 9.5 million Afghans live in areas where they do not have access to healthcare services.
