Gaza's displaced lack access to healthcare as system collapses
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Gaza's healthcare system cannot reach the most vulnerable displaced people living in camps. A volunteer medical team saw at least 150 patients in one day at a camp in Gaza City, treating chronic diseases and infections. The collapse persists even as no major hospital raids or bombings are currently reported.
Key Facts
- At least 150 patients were seen in one day by a volunteer medical team at a camp on the grounds of Hassan Salama school in Gaza City.
- The Hassan Salama school was bombed along with the neighbouring Nasr school in August 2024, killing at least 30 people.
- A 46-year-old patient with a shrapnel foot injury and hypertension would have had to pay at least $8 for transportation to the nearest health facility.
- Al Rantisi Hospital is partially functioning and offers services mostly to children and oncology patients.
Camp Conditions
Hundreds of people rendered homeless and destitute by the war live in tents in the schoolyard and what is left of the school building. No organisation runs the camp, so there is no provision of any services, including medical ones. Lack of sanitation, safe potable water and constant exposure to unbearable heat or cold make the health crisis even worse.
Medical Outreach
A team of several medics from a local private clinic offered free check-ups at the camp for a day. Complaints ranged from high blood pressure to chronic diseases, such as diabetes and kidney problems, and infections, such as hepatitis and scabies. Many children presented with chickenpox, gastroenteritis, diarrhoea and respiratory infections.
Barriers to Care
Transportation costs, long distances and exhaustion caused by displacement and extreme heat contribute to some patients delaying medical care, despite their urgent needs. A 46-year-old patient with a shrapnel foot injury and hypertension could not go to the nearby Al Rantisi Hospital because the facility is partially functioning and offers services mostly to children and oncology patients. To get a free assessment of his hypertension and a prescription for medication, he would have had to pay at least $8 for transportation to the nearest health facility.
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Gaza's displaced lack access to healthcare as system collapses
