The hidden toll of treating the wounded in South Sudan

At Wau Teaching Hospital, medical workers receive patients injured in fighting, assess their condition and provide care, often while more casualties are arriving.

For Anna Gabriel Ngori Bono, a nurse in the hospital's surgical department, the pressure became particularly intense earlier this month when dozens of patients with gunshot wounds arrived from Tonj North, followed by another group just days later.

The scale and severity of the emergency overwhelmed her.

"With these gunshot wounds, the number of patients is difficult to manage because there are too many.

Even that puts me in a mental disorder," she said.

Her experience comes as South Sudan's trauma caseload grows.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says it evacuated 266 wounded patients across the country in the first six months of 2026, more than 50% higher than during the same period last year.

But treating the wounded involves more than physical injuries.

At Wau, medical workers must sometimes overcome language barriers, mistrust between communities and differences in cultural practices while persuading patients to follow medical advice.

"Mentally, all this really affects us because it is draining trying to convince someone that something is for their benefit, but they keep refusing to listen to you," Bono said.

Her experience is not isolated.

At the hospital, counsellors are seeing how the demands of treating conflict-related injuries affect staff.

Peter Anou Yol, a psychosocial counsellor, said long working hours can leave medical workers exhausted and affect their concentration.

"Sometimes, you may find the staff will work from the morning until late in the evening.