“Our objective is to visit those people [in rural areas]. We are in particular looking for conditions such as blood pressure and diabetes,” Aram Khasraw, a member of the medical team whose department is tasked with preventative measures, told Rudaw.
The teams visit each household door to door and raise awareness about necessary medical instructions and precautions. Those who are found to suffer from diseases are advised to seek treatment in urban areas and carry out routine check-ups.
Ainadin Qadir, 64, said the team told him he has to control his blood pressure, stressing that he is now increasingly aware of what he is facing.
He vowed to check his blood pressure at least once every three or four days, and to break a bad habit of forgetting his check-ups.
“Sometimes we take a test, and then we just forget about the next tests since we are so busy,” Qadir said.
A financial crisis struck the Kurdistan Region a decade ago, affecting all sectors including health and education. Budget cuts by the Iraqi government, the war against the Islamic State (ISIS), and the drop in oil prices significantly affected the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) ability to administer the Region.
The halt of independent Kurdish oil exports to the international market over a year ago exacerbated the Region’s financial struggles.
Although Baghdad and Erbil have sought to resolve their budgetary differences, the former is yet to receive its share of the federal budget. Public sector employees have recently started to receive their monthly salaries from the Iraqi government following a Federal Supreme Court ruling stating that the Region’s salaries are the responsibility of Baghdad.
Azad Mustafa, director general of Halabja’s health department, lamented that they cannot sustain the health centers in the rural areas, attributing their difficulties to limited human resources.
He said that they cannot pay their staff the allowances they need, such as transport, and that they have issues with providing the necessary medicine. This has forced the health officials to carry out the initiative.
“The elderly find it difficult to reach us. We have to reach them,” he said.
There are six hospitals and 33 medical clinics in Halabja province, the poorest in the Kurdistan Region.
