Gaza update

Palestinian Territories | 10 January 2009

Security issues continue to complicate the situation in Gaza. The emergency medical organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) faces major problems in obtaining access to people wounded in the conflict. The security conditions prevent medical teams and humanitarian workers from providing aid to a population that has nowhere to flee and finds itself trapped.

The temporary ceasefire is not helping humanitarian aid workers do their job or patients reach hospitals. It affects only Gaza City, not the urban areas on the outskirts. MSF’s post-operative care clinic in Gaza City is open every day, but given the risks, very few patients manage to get there.

MSF’s Palestinian medical team continues to provide care in the immediate area of their place of residence, but these activities are also very limited in comparison to the enormous needs.

On Jan. 7, MSF teams visited three schools housing displaced persons. They evaluated the medical needs there and distributed medical supplies and medications. There are doctors among the displaced people and they are providing care.

MSF field teams are in constant contact with Palestinian hospitals and report that hospital workers are exhausted by the flow of wounded patients, especially at night.

An MSF surgical team is currently in Jerusalem. It includes a vascular surgeon, general surgeon, nurse-anesthetist, operating room nurse and an anesthesiologist specialized in intensive care. The organization hopes to be able to enter the Gaza Strip as soon as possible. This team will support the Palestinian medical teams at the Shifa referral hospital.

MSF is also awaiting final authorization to bring into Gaza 21 tonnes of medical supplies, including two inflatable tents. The tents would be used to increase intensive care in-patient capacity and, possibly, set up an additional operating room. An MSF logistician will join the field teams to set up these facilities.