“I finished my education as war broke out. I started work during the war. Missiles and shells used to land near the hospital. I remember one time we left the examination room and, minutes later, a shell fired by a tank hit the room. It wasn’t my time yet!
Four months after I started work, I was forced to stop working and stay at home. The house was in the middle of the violence, with heavy shooting on both sides. My mother, father, younger brother and I had to take shelter in the basement. We all lived in the basement for a period of six months. Then I went back to work in the intensive care unit at Al Thawra hospital. This was before I had to leave the city centre, where my family lives, and move to the other side and live by myself. Ever since then, I have lived alone, and can only visit my family occasionally. A distance that used to take 30 minutes – from the hospital here to the city centre – currently takes 5-7 hours. It depends on the condition of the road: is it safe? Is there fighting on the way? It also depends on being able to find a car that could transport us there or waiting until we can secure one." - Dr. Sana, GP, paediatric and nenoatal doctor, Mother and Child Hospital - Taiz Houban.