Ralph Hurley O'Dwyer

Gaza’s healthcare system has now been destroyed. No modern society can function without one. The absence of one imposes a death sentence on growing numbers of people: from the ill and sick to the injured to pregnant women. Along with the siege, this is a genocidal act.

Sharing some photos from our awareness campaign at the Mater Hospital, in celebration of World TB Day, where we're rallying to end TB! Together, we're making a difference. #EndTB #YesWeCanEndTB 📸"

Thrilled to see the active participation of our ID Consultants and Registrars in our NIU Activation and High-Level PPE Training at Mater Hospital! Their engagement and expertise are driving our preparedness for HCIDs 🏥🌍

@DrMBarrett @CHI_Ireland @Cillmurry @tcddublin @EllenPBarry @danihalltweets This makes me so happy to see! Huge congratulations for what looks like an amazing project!

words whispered to a child under siege

On this dark night for humanity, I beg that the intrinsic humanity of all humans in this conflict be recognised, Voices for peace must prevail.

Yet the abject brutality of Hamas does not justify the parallel systemic killing of thousands of Palestinians, a huge proportion of whom are children. Too often, their basic humanity, their right to safety and ultimately their right to dream of a better life, are forgotten.

Tonight, I can’t stop thinking about the staff who have stayed behind in hospitals in northern Gaza, sentenced to death for looking after the most vulnerable in society, in a land that for over 70 years has been an open prison.

I am numbed by the Israeli bombing of Al Ahli hospital in Gaza today. As a doctor, I cannot imagine the trauma – the torture – of seeing your patients and colleagues die around you. Children for a large part, terrified, and now dead in their beds.

Evacuation orders by Israel to hospitals in northern Gaza are a death sentence for the sick and injured As the @UN's agency responsible for public health, the World Health Organization (WHO) strongly condemns Israel's repeated orders for the evacuation of 22 hospitals treating more than 2000 inpatients in northern Gaza. The forced evacuation of patients and health workers will further worsen the current humanitarian and public health catastrophe. The lives of many critically ill and fragile patients hang in the balance: those in intensive care or who rely on life support; patients undergoing hemodialysis; newborns in incubators; women with complications of pregnancy, and others all face imminent deterioration of their condition or death if they are forced to move and are cut off from life-saving medical attention while being evacuated. Health facilities in northern Gaza continue to receive an influx of injured patients and are struggling to operate beyond maximum capacity. Some patients are being treated in corridors and outdoors in surrounding streets due to a lack of hospital beds. Forcing more than 2000 patients to relocate to southern Gaza, where health facilities are already running at maximum capacity and unable to absorb a dramatic rise in the number patients, could be tantamount to a death sentence. Hospital directors and health workers are now facing an agonizing choice: abandon critically ill patients amid a bombing campaign, put their own lives at risk while remaining on site to treat patients, or endanger their patients’ lives while attempting to transport them to facilities that have no capacity to receive them. Overwhelmingly, caregivers have chosen to stay behind and honor their oaths as health professionals to “do no harm,” rather than risk moving their critically ill patients during evacuations. Health workers should never have to make such impossible choices. Additionally, tens of thousands of displaced people in northern Gaza are seeking refuge in open spaces in or around hospitals, treating them as havens from violence as well as to protect the facilities from potential attacks. Their lives, too, are at risk when health facilities are bombed. There are verified reports of deaths of health care workers and destruction of health facilities, which denies civilians the basic human right of life-saving health care and is prohibited under International Humanitarian Law. WHO calls for Israel to immediately reverse evacuation orders to hospitals in northern Gaza, and calls for the protection of health facilities, health workers, patients, and civilians. WHO also reiterates its calls for the immediate and safe delivery of medical supplies, fuel, clean water, food, and other humanitarian aid into Gaza through the Rafah crossing, where life-saving assistance, including WHO health supplies that arrived earlier today, is currently awaiting entry.

Regarding my tweet below, if you can donate anything to the two organisations below, it would help. They offer support to young LGBTQ+ folk, they go into schools and educate teachers and students. Thank you. 💔🌈🏳️‍⚧️ Pls RT. shoutout.ie/donate belongto.org/donate/

I wish the whole country could let the young person in Navan know that we love them and we are enraged. I wish they knew that we would have given anything to stop this from happening. I can’t put into words how upset I am about this violent, relentless attack.

Exquisite ☘

Over Christmas, I read @seanehewitt's sublime book "All Down Darkness Wide". I haven't stopped thinking about it since. Today, I decided to jot down some thoughts: ralphhurleyodwyer.wordpress.com/2023/02/26/all…

#CROI2023: Treatment for tuberculosis, a leading cause of death worldwide, typically involves 6 months of continuous therapy. In the TRUNCATE-TB trial, a strategy involving shorter initial treatment was noninferior to standard treatment. nej.md/3XsQB4H

@Louise_A_Ward @RCPI_news Massive congratulations Louise! I'm over the moon for you! 😊 I can't think of anyone who deserves this more.

I am so delighted to accept a place as a Geriatric SpR starting in July with @RCPI_news

The #mpox vaccine booking portal remains open at hse.ie/monkeypox with good availability to the end of February in vaccine centres across Ireland. 100s of appointments this week in Croke Park and Citywest. Getting fully vaxxed will keep cases low and end the outbreak.

Nunca es tarde en esta vida, que nadie os diga que no podéis hacer algo porque llegáis tarde. Este es mi abuelo, tiene 84 años y se acaba de graduar en Medicina. Orgullosísimo 🥰🥰

Today is #WorldLeprosyDay What is leprosy? An infection of skin and nerves caused by the slow growing bacterium Mycobacterium leprae. Contrary to popular belief, it is not very infectious, and can be effectively treated with antibiotics. Raise awareness. End the stigma.