Somaliland Hospital Cares for Malnourished From Drought

ERIGAVO, SOMALILAND — 

As the breakaway republic of Somaliland grapples with a severe drought, medical workers are struggling to aid people left weakened by malnourishment and hunger.

A 70-year-old hospital in Erigavo, the capital of the Sanaag region, is operating beyond full capacity to treat people affected¹ by the drought. And it's the only hospital in the region.

The drought has left tens of thousands of children acutely malnourished. In desperate need of treatment, they are checked as they lie on the beds in this stabilization² center ward³.

Ismail Saleban Bowkah, the hospital's director, said most of the children admitted for care come from rural areas.

"The drought forced most pastoralists to move from one area into another.Some came to the cities. But most of the malnourished children admitted here, are from the rural area," Bowkah said.

Aydarus Salah, a 14-month-old boy, weighed just over six kilograms (13 pounds) when he was brought to the hospital from the Darar IDP camp. His mother, fighting back tears, said her son was suffering from severe diarrhea and malnutrition⁴.

Dr. Abdishakur Saleban Warsame said Aydarus is improving and now weighs 7.2 kg (15.8 pounds).

"He was very weak when he was referred here. His weight and height were too low, we put him in the stabilization center as he was in the severely⁵ malnourished cafeteria," Warsame said. "The initial phase, he could not take the feeding or the milk, so we inserted the NG tube to increase his feeding, now he still has the NG tube."

Medical officials said some families in the drought-stricken area cannot afford to bring their children to local medical centers. But doctors encourage parents to make the trip if they can.

"In rural areas, sometimes families with malnourished children are not able to bring them to hospitals," Bowkah said. "So, for example, if a mother has 10 kids, and five of them are malnourished, we beg her to bring the sick children to a hospital."

The United Nations has said more than 6 million people across Somalia and Somaliland are in need of help due to the extended drought, which shows no signs of ending.

1 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

2 Stabilization   

稳定化

参考例句：

• The position of barycentre on plane directly impacts the stabilization and manipulation of plane. 飞机重心位置直接影响飞机的稳定和操纵特性。
• With the higher olefins, stabilization of the energetic intermediates occurs more easily. 在较高的烯烃情况下，高能的中间物稳定作用更易出现。

3 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

4 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

5 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。