Having worked as a pharmacist, I am familiar with having to make substitutions in patients’ medications to treat diseases, pathogens and conditions. But this is simply not possible for a person in need of oxygen therapy – there is no alternative when this lifesaving intervention is required.
The harrowing scenes of desperate shortages of medical oxygen during the Covid-19 pandemic brought the issue of access to this lifesaving healthcare product into stark relief – particularly in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). But the harsh reality it that this inequitable access based on where some people live has been the status quo for far too long, with many healthcare systems in LMICs still unable to provide patients with oxygen therapy for a wide range of other diseases, conditions and medical interventions faced on a daily basis.
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