Italian field hospital for Syrians opens in Mafraq

Italian Ambassador to Jordan Francesco Fransoni on Tuesday inaugurated the Italian field hospital for Syrian refugees in Mafraq, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. The $780,000, 16-bed hospital, which was donated by the Italian government, has the capacity of receiving 100 patients a day, said Fransoni, who added that the hospital will start operating next week. He noted that the facility will be expanded and provided with more medical specialisations when needed. The hospital will be managed by the Royal Medical Services and established and commissioned by a team ofItalian medical experts who arrived in the Kingdom last week along with equipment to supply the hospital, according to the embassy. "The field hospital is fully equipped with specialised diagnostic laboratories,” the embassy said in a previous statement, adding that a surgical unit may be added in the future. The assistance is part of the recent collaboration agreement between Italy and Jordan as part of the Regional Humanitarian Working Group of the Friends of the Syrian People, in response to the “persistent deterioration” of the situation in the Kingdom’s northern neighbour, according to the embassy. The aid is provided by the Office of Emergency of the Italian Cooperation for Development, in collaboration with Italian Civil Protection and the National Alpine Association, the embassy said.