Orthopaedic Initiative for the Gaza Strip

MiST are leading a 2-year education programme in Gaza, Palestine. An individualized diploma programme taught in partnership with Edge Hill University, UK.

The modules are taught through e-learning, local mentors and MiST units who visit Gaza on a monthly basis for 10 days. The teams assess the candidates, deliver a tutorial and act as a continuous quality assurance for the diploma course. The course covers all aspects of orthopaedics and will help the candidates prepare for their Palestinian Board exit examinations.

Each month a MiST surgeon with an Orthopaedic sub-speciality will spend 10 days at the European Gaza Hospital. Prior to their visit, patients and local surgeons relevant to this sub-speciality will attend the theatre sessions. The aim is to train the local surgeons in a speciality and they will in turn act as mentors for the other junior surgeons in the Gaza strip.

Health Care Now

Following a number of visits, assessments and meetings with key people in the Gaza Strip, Jordan and Qatar, MiST proposes a long term plan for improvements in Orthopaedic Surgery in the Gaza Strip.

The health care of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip is worse now than it has ever been since the start of the Israeli military occupation in 1967. The Gazans’ health care has dramatically deteriorated on two levels: the provision of health services inside Gaza and access to treatment outside Gaza.

Many services and life-saving treatments are not available to Palestinians inside Gaza.  Moreover, the supply of medicines, medical disposables and medical equipment to Gaza is significantly delayed.
Furthermore, Palestinian internal disputes and frictions between the political factions have affected Palestinian health facilities and led to distortion of work system, lack of accountability, unclear lines of authority, contradictory decisions "between West Bank and Gaza", unjustified displacement and redeployment of employees with long labour strikes.

Partnerships and Funding

The funding for this 2-year project has been sought from the Qatar Red Crescent, Doha, Qatar, Human Appeal International, Manchester, UK and private donations to MiST. We thank MAP for their support.

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Orthopaedic Manpower

The population of the Gaza Strip is approximately 1.5 million with the majority leading an agrarian lifestyle. Of these, 50% are less than 12 years old.
The number of Orthopaedic Consultants is 10 in the Gaza Strip, so a deficiency of around 65 surgeons exists. The project to improve Orthopaedic services is a vital investment in Gazas' infrastructures.

MiST proposes to develop the European Gaza Hospital into a ‘Centre of Excellence’ and a Level 1 Trauma Centre. The other Level 1 trauma centre will be located in the north of the Gaza Strip, at Al Shifa Hospital, Gaza City.

Pain Management and Rehabilitation Service

With the local clinicians, MiST are developing the chronic pain service in Gaza based at Al Waffa Hospital, Gaza City. Currently, the pain services in Gaza are in its infancy and there are many patients in need of modalities to help reduce pain and improve function.

It is at this institution MiST would like to introduce the Jaipur foot. The Jaipur foot technology is simple, reproducible and easily transferable and inexpensive ($30 each) and has proved to be a functional way of treating amputees in developing countries. Our team from India will arrive for a 14-day visit to teach and train local technicians the art of making the prosthesis from locally available materials. Subsequent 3 monthly visits are planned to continue the monitoring and developing the local skills. The Jaipur foot works very well in patients who culturally need to squat for activities of daily living including rituals of prayer.

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Multi - charity report on continuation on Gaza blockade.