Former Minister Elias Bou Saab rented the Lebanese Canadian Hospital in Sin El Fil for a year. His initiative is to allocate the hospital to coronavirus (COVID-19) patients since it has been closed for about 7 months and it can now be used quickly.
He issued: “I contacted the hospital owner who was very responsive, and I rented the hospital for one year to be run during this period by the Ministry of Health in a way it deems appropriate. After that, the hospital will continue serving the people of the area.”
He explained that, as per an initial study, the hospital is a private one but it is run as a governmental hospital and will be securing free medicine for children up to the age of 15.”
He elaborated further, explaining that they will be starting with several plans, which include enrolling a number of doctors who have offered to volunteer.
He called on those who want to cooperate to help them secure financing for continuity and free treatment “in light of the difficult economic situation beyond COVID-19.”
“It will be necessary to provide this for the people in this region. This is also our duty,” he stressed.
He shared that they have been also working to secure funds from international organizations, in which case the project could be then expanded.
“This initiative will be completed by a second meeting because there are things that must be resolved related to the Ministry of Health and matters that must be followed by those concerned,” he pointed out.
Bou Saab stated that everyone who has the ability to help, whether a deputy or any other Lebanese person, should do their part, and that this responsibility is national and international.
Noting the Metn region in Lebanon is recording the highest number of infected people yet doesn’t have a hospital equipped for Coronavirus emergencies. The only available governmental hospital is not equipped and is now placed as the second phase of the Ministry of Health’s plan.
The Lebanese Minister of Health, Hamad Hassan, toured the Lebanese Canadian Hospital in Sin El Fil, inspecting its readiness to receive Coronavirus patients. He was accompanied by the ex-Minister Elias Bou Saab and the Director of the hospital, Dr. Joe Toutikian.
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