Gaza: MSF increases its medical activities in Wake of Ceasefire

The three MSF clinics are now open in the Gaza Strip and a surgical team is working in Al Shifa hospital, while a mobile hospital is being set up to focus on patients who need further surgical care.

Surgical team is working in Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza City since sunday January 18. A vascular surgeon, an orthopedic surgeon, an anesthetist and an operating room nurse have reinforced the medical staff who carried out close to 500 interventions during the three weeks of fighting. At least 40 percent of the injured required amputations.

Surgical needs after the Israeli and Hamas ceasefires. Some patients need a second surgical procedure and some interventions have been delayed those last week, as the medical teams had to work quickly and to give the priority to the most severely wounded. Another MSF surgical team, with a vascular surgeon, an anaesthetist and a intensive care unit nurse, has arrived in Gaza on Monday, January 19. There is now a large presence of international medical staff at Al Shifa Hospitals and MSF is setting an independent mobile hospital to focus on specific needs.

Inflatable Hospitals Going Up in Gaza City. Two operating rooms and a ten-bed intensive care unit into two inflatable hospital tents are being placed close to MSF's post-op clinic in Gaza City and will be operational shortly. Drugs, surgical kits for 300 procedures and 100 hospitalization kits arrived in Gaza City among a cargo freight of 21 tons of medical materials, on January 19

Resuming Full Medical Activities, Cases Expected to Increase. At the MSF post-operative clinic in Gaza City, medical staff treated 30 people on January 19, a higher number than the previous days. The MSF clinic in the southern Gazan town of Khan Younis and the MSF pediatric clinic in the northern town of Beit Lahia have resumed their activities. Patient numbers are expected to increase as people slowly begin to move more freely in their neighbourhoods and seek out medical assistance.

Assessments going on. MSF teams are carrying out assessments in various locations in Gaza to determine overall levels of medical needs, including at gathering points of internally displaced persons.

Nine more international staff are scheduled to arrive in Gaza tomorrow, to join the 70 Palestinian staff and currently 12 international staff of the MSF team. Additional MSF staff and materials will be positioned inside Gaza if necessary.