Patients including those in need of urgent care like women in labour, when delayed or denied access to specialised medical services, can suffer from deteriorating medical conditions which can affect their quality of life and contribute to death in some cases.
A new UN report has highlighted how the imposition of a complex and restrictive system of permits is putting Palestinian life and health at unnecessary risk. The report, produced by the UN Country Team in the occupied Palestinian territory, discusses how movement and access is restricted for patients in need of specialised medical care and how this is impacting on their daily lives.
Palestinian residents requiring medical care outside their region of residence require an exit permit from Israel. The report highlights how this is increasingly an issue for residents in need of specialised medical care in the West Bank and Gaza. These patients are often referred for treatment in East Jerusalem, where the most advanced Palestinian hospitals are located, only to have their access permits delayed or denied. The report’s findings show, for instance, that medical referral permits to exit Gaza are becoming harder for Palestinians to obtain. In 2015, 22.5% of the almost 22,000 patients from Gaza who required a permit to exit Gaza through the Erez check point were either denied or delayed access, a sharp increase from 7% in 2014.
In the West Bank patients requiring medical referral permits also face access barriers. In 2015, 12.8% of the more than 80,000 patients from the West Bank were denied a permit. Barriers also exist for emergency treatments, as the report highlights, “patients including those in need of urgent care like women in labour, when delayed or denied access to specialised medical services, can suffer from deteriorating medical conditions which can affect their quality of life and contribute to death in some cases”. For some specialised services, such as burns care, organisations like MAP can help to develop these specialisms in multiple locations to reduce these risks. However, East Jerusalem remains a hub for medical treatment and many specialised services, including for high-risk pregnancies, still require transfer to East Jerusalem hospitals.
The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) monthly report on Gaza referrals and access, released last week, confirms that exit permits from Gaza are becoming harder to obtain and that this is detrimental for patients in need of urgent medical referrals. The report states that Israeli approvals of permits have continued to decline in 2016, from a high in January of 78.2% to a low of 44.1% in October. The reports highlights that, “a delayed permit means delayed medical care, particularly harmful for cancer patients whose treatment protocols must be timely”.
With this restricted access from Erez and Rafah crossings, critically ill patients are suffering the most. The delay in their treatment may lead to irreversible complications and unfortunately in some cases to unnecessary death.
Fikr Shalltoot, MAP's Director of Programmes in Gaza
2017 marks the 50-year anniversary of the Israeli occupation and 10-year anniversary of the blockade and closure of Gaza. This year, we are calling on governments like the UK to redouble their efforts to bring the occupation to an end and stop the restrictive permit regime. This is vital to save lives and improve the quality of life for Palestinians, particularly those suffering from ill-health.
You can read the full UN Report here