Rehabilitating the injured in Gaza
12 February 2009
Two new centres are opening in Gaza next week to provide vital rehabilitation care to people who have been injured during the recent bombardment.
Handicap International (HI), partly funded by a £422,000 grant from the Department
for International Development, is opening the new centres where people with
injuries and disabilities can go for treatment.
At the centres, aid workers will provide physiotherapy to help limit the long-term impact of the injuries.
It is estimated that during the recent crisis in Gaza, more than 5,300 people (Palestinian Health Ministry) have been wounded; of those wounded, between 40 and 70 per cent have severe traumatic injuries.
If some of these injuries are not treated with immediate rehabilitation, experts fear many could result in permanent disability.
HI aid workers have been working in Gaza since 1996 but they scaled up their work during and after the recent bombardment.
During the bombardment, they helped register patients as the emergency cases
arrived at hospitals across the Gaza Strip. The organisation also supported the
medical team at Al-Shifa hospital, in Gaza City, by providing a physiotherapist.
Home visits are now being made regularly to people who cannot travel for treatment. And basic essential equipment such as wheelchairs, crutches, toilet chairs, air mattresses, hygiene kits and blankets have been distributed to people in need.
HI aid workers have also been providing support to elderly people, women who are more than seven months pregnant, and people with chronic diseases.
