Iraq’s financial crisis has left the state unable to hire tens of thousands of newly trained medical personnel who could help relieve pressure on a healthcare system struggling to contain the coronavirus pandemic. Staff shortages, as well as scarce oxygen and equipment supplies, are severely hampering COVID-19 containment measures, according to nine doctors, medical graduates and researchers in Iraq. “Not hiring the new graduates will impact negatively on services, because there is a shortage in the number of doctors,” said a Baghdad-based official at the Iraq Medical Association, which represents healthcare professionals. The inability to […]