Citation

Bsat S, Moussalem C, Kawtharani S, El Houshiemy MN, Halaoui A, Saba T, Najjar M, Assi H, Baajour J, El-Houcheimi I, Saad GA, Darwish H. World Neurosurg. 2022; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.wneu.2022.03.112

PMID

35367645

Abstract

BACKGROUND: In this paper, we shed the light on Beirut's blast that took place in the COVID 19 era. An explosion that ripped the heart of Beirut, with a destructive shock wave that left thousands of casualties and homeless people. This explosion, which had a mushroom-like cloud appearance similar to that of Hiroshima and Nakazaki, was described as the third biggest explosion in human history. A blast that not only destroyed lives but also fell as a heavy burden on the shoulders of a country that is suffering from unprecedented economic crisis on top of the COVID 19 pandemic. Facing all this, healthcare providers were the first line of defense in what looked like an impossible mission.

OBJECTIVE: To share with the medical community our experience and the challenges we faced, as a neurosurgery team, during this event. Especially that we were short of basic medical equipment as well as ICU beds since we were in the middle of an economic crisis and the peak of COVID's pandemic. This prohibited us from delivering proper care whether in the triage of patients or in the operating room as well as post-operative care. Now, one year after this sad event, we revisited the whole situation, and looked at all the pitfalls that could have been avoided. Thus, we discussed the importance of initiating a disaster response in particular the neurosurgical emergency response, to be better prepared to face future potential events.

CONCLUSION: The rate limiting step in such disasters is definitely a well prepared trained team with prompt and fast response. And since time is brain, then what saves the brain is proper timing.

Language: en