9 July 2024, Beirut, Lebanon – Baabda Governmental University Hospital has officially launched its oxygen generation plant – one of 7 plants newly set up by WHO Lebanon in public hospitals across the country and funded by the German government through KfW Development Bank. The new facility highlights the importance of self-sufficient oxygen production to improve patient care and manage medical emergencies.
The launch of the new pressure swing adsorption (PSA) oxygen generation plant, a significant addition to Lebanon’s health infrastructure, took place on 26 June 2024. The Minister of Public Health, German Ambassador to Lebanon and WHO Representative to Lebanon were present.
Minister of Public Health Dr Firass Abiad talked about the “importance of the oxygen plant project at Baabda hospital and the Ministry’s readiness given Israel’s aggression against Lebanon, which targets children, women and elderly people. We as a government call for an immediate end to all these attacks, but on the other hand, we as the Ministry of Public Health are interested in ensuring that all hospitals are fully prepared, especially in terms of securing energy and oxygen. I would like to announce that more than 15 public hospitals have been provided with solar power, and oxygen for more than 12 public hospitals, which are some of the largest hospitals.”
WHO worked on this project in close cooperation with the Ministry, and with the German government’s generous funding, to enhance hospitals’ readiness and self-sufficiency in producing medical oxygen. This is part of WHO’s global strategy for health system readiness in times of crisis.
German Ambassador Mr Kurt Georg Stöckl-Stillfried said, “I am pleased to note that Germany has contributed to concrete and tangible improvements in public health care in Lebanon. An estimated 75 000 patients every year will benefit from medical oxygen. We have also contributed to equipping 150 primary health care centres with solar panels and supported staff in intensive care units of governmental hospitals. All these measures have been part of a project worth 40.5 million euros financed by the German government through KfW Development Bank and implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Public Health, WHO and others.”
PSA oxygen generation plants provide high-quality, medical-grade oxygen, which is a critical medicine required at all levels of health care. Lebanon’s severe crisis, with deteriorating socioeconomic conditions, inflation, and currency devaluation, has caused oxygen costs to skyrocket and availability to decline over recent years.
Both the local oxygen producers had resorted to rationing supplies owing to power and fuel shortages, creating challenges for hospitals in Lebanon. Installing PSA oxygen generation plants tailored to hospital needs became crucial during the COVID-19 emergency to enhance hospitals’ capacity to treat severe cases. WHO took the initiative to support hospitals by establishing the 7 new oxygen plants across the country.
Along with vaccines, oxygen has saved millions of lives globally during the COVID-19 pandemic, which shows the value of oxygen in reducing hospital deaths, among adults and children alike.
As Dr Abdinasir Abubakar, acting WHO Representative to Lebanon, concluded at the launch: “Oxygen is a life-saving treatment with no substitute, and it is essential for treating respiratory illnesses, like COVID-19 and pneumonia, and also in surgery and trauma care. In Lebanon, one of the priorities of the United Nations strategy for the humanitarian–development–peace nexus approach is to ensure that hospitals have sufficient infrastructure to provide adequate, affordable and sustainable oxygen. In line with this, WHO has remained committed to promoting the provision of oxygen in all referral hospitals. As a result, WHO established PSA plants in 7 public hospitals with the assistance of KfW Development Bank.”
