Patients at Al-Duwaim Teaching Hospital in Sudan’s White Nile State are struggling to access basic healthcare as rising costs place treatment beyond the reach of many families.
The cost of refilling a single oxygen cylinder has climbed to 35,000 Sudanese pounds, while many public sector workers earn less than 50,000 pounds a month.
Patients are also required to pay hospital entrance fees and purchase essential medicines, medical supplies, and diagnostic tests from private pharmacies and laboratories.
Long queues have become common, with many patients waiting for hours under trees because of a shortage of doctors and a lack of proper waiting facilities.
The hospital’s deteriorating conditions have added to the hardship, with overflowing waste and poor sanitation raising concerns about hygiene and patient safety.
Medical staff also face frequent shortages of essential supplies, forcing some surgeries to stop until patients’ relatives can buy the required materials from outside the hospital.
As emergency services struggle to meet demand, many residents are left with little choice but to seek treatment at costly private clinics despite the financial burden.
