Reference :
V-P-IL-E-03148
Date :
04/2018
Caption :
Gaza, hospital. Portrait of Dr. Ahmad, surgeon.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
“Every day I have to make a difficult decision: to discharge a patient or keep them in. Many of them live in poverty and I know that if I discharge them they will not get the care they need at home. If I keep them here, we may not have enough hospital beds next time there is an influx of wounded. While your patient is on the operation table, you develop a relationship with them. When I go home afterwards I feel guilty to leave, always thinking there might be complications while I am not there.”
Following the escalation of violence along the border area in Gaza, almost two thousand Palestinians have required urgent medical assistance. Hospitals in Gaza, already over-stretched, mobilized all available resources to handle the crisis. Managing the influx of wounded has been particularly difficult, as health services in Gaza are weakened by shortage of drugs and medical supplies, severe restrictions of movement, chronic energy crisis and worsening economic situation.
Despite difficult working conditions, doctors, nurses and paramedics in Gaza have gone the extra mile to attend to the influx of wounded and keep regular health services running. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) supports hospitals in Gaza with emergency medical supplies, mobility devices, technical expertise and trainings.
Original material :
digital
Resolution :
5641x3761
Orientation :
landscape
Colour/B&W :
colour
