Lebanese herbalist Akl Khalaf receives a client at his pharmacy in Lebanon's eastern town of al-Bireh on April 25, 2022. (Photo by Taher Abou Hamdan/Xinhua)
As the service costs at specialized clinics have been skyrocketing, the best alternative Iman Ismail could find to relieve her son's symptoms is now Lebanese herbal medicine.
The Central Bank of Lebanon has lifted most drug subsidies due to a broader cash-strapped situation in the country, leading to exponential growth in doctor fees and medication prices.
by Dana Halawi
BEIRUT, April 26 (Xinhua) -- Iman Ismail used Lebanese herbal medicine to treat her 7-year-old son's mild arthritis, after a visit to a doctor in her neighborhood cost her 500,000 Lebanese pounds (18.5 U.S. dollars) and incurred another two million pounds in prescribed medication.
"I did not expect medicines prices to have increased to such an extent," Iman, a part-time tailor from the southern town of Nabatieh, told Xinhua.
As the service costs at a Rheumatologist have been skyrocketing, the best alternative she could find to help her son is now herbal medicine, according to Ismail.
A traditional clinic in Nabatieh recommended a few types of herbs for reducing her child's symptoms in approximately a month, giving her a window to save money for future spending on a more specialized clinic.
"It surely helps my son until I figure out a way to pay for medicines prescribed by his Rheumatologist if his symptoms worsen," Iman said.
Jamila Halawani, whose 5-year-old son can't get enough sleep due to severe cough and phlegm, visited a well-known herbalist clinic in al-Rafid, a southern town of the Bekaa governorate, and was prescribed three doses of hot green tea a day and one dose of ginger mixed with lemon juice.
"This mixture luckily helped relieve my child's cough which saved me the cost of a doctor visit and medicines," Halawani told Xinhua.
Akl Khalaf, a herbal medicine specialist, mixes the ingredients at his pharmacy in Lebanon's eastern town of al-Bireh on April 25, 2022. (Photo by Taher Abou Hamdan/Xinhua)
As much as 80 percent of the Lebanese paid in the Lebanese pound, which was collapsing due to a shortage of foreign reserves, bringing about a dire financial predicament for most citizens.
Doctor fees were doubling and medication prices have been souring exponentially after the Central Bank of Lebanon in November 2021 lifted most drug subsidies due to a broader cash-strapped situation.
The financial crisis also plunged the National Social Security Fund into a great deficit, forcing it to halt its health coverage for citizens including hospitalization and medicines bills.
Jamal Abu Daoud, a public health specialist, confirmed to Xinhua that the number of patients in his clinic dropped remarkably as patients have become unable to secure the cost of examinations, medicines, lab tests, and x-rays.
"Some patients are even unable to make it to my clinic as transportation costs have increased to a great extent," he said.
On the contrary, Mansour Qaddoura, a herbalist in Lebanon's eastern town of al-Bireh, seemed to be doing well with his office being overcrowded with patients with different health issues.
"Our treatments focus on herbs, including, but not limited to, garlic, parsley, ginger, purslane, green tea, thyme, potato, chamomile, blackberry, pomegranate peel and pumpkin," he said, adding that prices of herbs went up by 20 percent but remain less expensive than mainstream medication.
Jacques Choucair, head of the infectious diseases department at Hotel Dieu Hospital in Beirut, told Xinhua that alternative medicine is a broad term that can include acupuncture, herbal medicine, and other forms of treatment.
"I am in favor of acupuncture which helps in releasing pain and treating inflammation in addition to herbal medicine as half of our medicines are made of herbs," he said, noting that herbalists should know the exact dosage.
Akl Khalaf arranges herbal medicines at his pharmacy in Lebanon's southern town of al-Bireh on April 25, 2022. (Photo by Taher Abou Hamdan/Xinhua)■