A note before you read: This email shares detailed accounts of suffering that are very distressing. We're sharing it with you, because we believe it's important for our supporters to hear the experiences and work of our staff in Gaza, but please, take care.
John –
I've always told myself, 'There's not much we can do in medicine, but we can treat pain.' In Gaza, that's no longer true.
My name is Dr. Seema Jilani. I'm a pediatrician and humanitarian aid worker. I just spent two weeks working with the IRC's emergency medical team, in partnership with Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), in the emergency room of the Al Aqsa hospital in Gaza.
In just one day at the hospital, I had four patients die, all from war-related injuries. We'd run out of morphine, leaving us with only anti-anxiety medication to try to ease patients' suffering, but nothing to treat their pain.
[ ▶︎ •၊၊||၊|။||||။၊|• 1:30 ] I recently spoke about my experience in Gaza and shared a voice memo. I hope you'll listen to what I recorded — and help us share the impossible situation of Palestinian children and families.
Many children arrived with evidence of serious malnutrition, and there was an influx of casualties from Israel’s military bombardment.
Medical care is only getting more difficult to access in Gaza. Earlier this month, increasing Israeli military activity caused us to withdraw and cease our work in Al Aqsa hospital. This hospital is one of nine in the southern region, operating at three times its capacity. It faces the risk of closure due to evacuation orders issued in nearby areas and ongoing hostilities in the vicinity.
Our team, with the support of truly heroic Palestinian nurses and doctors – many of whom were coming in while their own families were displaced – were working to treat trauma injuries and save lives at the hospital. It is the last remaining lifeline for people in Middle Gaza injured by the ongoing bombardment and at risk of being cut off.
Our experience at Al Aqsa is hardly unique — across Gaza, the health sector finds itself on life support. Hospitals, ambulances, and medical staff all continue to come under fire.
John, the IRC is calling for an immediate and sustained ceasefire, adherence to international law, and the protection of civilians, hospitals, the sick, and the wounded.
Thank you for your compassion for children and families in crisis, in Gaza and around the world. Again, I hope you can listen to and share my first-hand account from Gaza [ ▶︎ •၊၊||၊|။||||။၊|• 1:30 ]
— Dr. Seema Jilani
Dr. Seema Jilani
Senior Health Advisor
International Rescue Committee |
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