There are the obvious risks of car bombs and other violence that now kill an average of 100 people a day, according to the report from the W.H.O.’s Health Action in Crises group. But beyond that, there are a host of other problems created by years of conflict: 70 percent of Iraqis lack regular access to clean water, and 80 percent lack toilets that do not contaminate water sources, according to the report.
As a result of these multiple public-health failings, diarrhea and respiratory infections now account for two-thirds of the deaths of children under five, the report said. Twenty-one percent of Iraqi children are now chronically malnourished, according to a 2006 national survey conducted by Unicef, which puts them at risk for both stunted growth and mental development.
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The report cites the Iraqi government as saying that almost 70 percent of critically injured patients die in the hospital because of lack of staff, drugs and equipment.
To make matters worse, pregnant women and the injured and ill in parts of Iraq, including Baghdad, are afraid to risk the trip to the hospital for security reasons, the report said. Dr. Shibib said the problem was complicated by divisions between Shiites and Sunnis that led Iraqis to fear that they would not be treated at certain facilities.
Iraq's Public Health Services Severely Strained, WHO Says
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