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“UNRWA Celebrates World Health Day, April 7th
“Angels of Mercy”
Three doctors, supported by a small team of nurses, work tirelessly in a cramped office in Al-Amari refugee camp in Ramallah. Each day they work against the clock, struggling to meet the medical needs of camp refugees. “This UNRWA clinic inside Al-Amari camp receives between 30 to 40 pregnant women a day,” says Hala Hanoun, head of the Mother and Baby Unit.
Patient load has doubled since non-payment of government salaries began in early spring 2006. “With the ongoing strike at the Ministry of Health, each morning the line to see the doctor grows longer. Sometimes a patient is not registered with us, but what can be done? I can't believe there is a doctor or nurse anywhere in the world that would turn away a pregnant or ill mother.”
Sundos' husband, like many Palestine refugees in the West Bank, is unemployed. Family meals are frugal, often without sufficient calories and nutrients for growing children. Aware of the family's economic situation, Dr. Ma'tuk writes out a prescription for free vitamins. Before leaving the clinic, Sundos is given milk vouchers and contact information for a social worker in UNRWA's relief and social services department. With a packed clinic, Dr. Mu'tak moves on to the next patient: a young girl who broke her arm in a fall. She will need an x-ray. Another patient, a woman with severe back pain, waits next in line. Behind her is a mother with two children. Walking through the clinic, one sees crowded waiting rooms: more than 200 patients are treated every day. At the beginning of each week, and on days before and after holidays, the clinic is even busier. The medical services provided here - pre- and post-natal care, diabetic care, and general medicine are in great demand.
26 year old Mervat, a mother of three, is here because her youngest boy, Abdullah, has a high fever. “This is my second time coming to the clinic. It is the only place I can come with my family when they are sick. Even when the doctor is busy, he makes time to treat my baby. I thank God for such compassionate people, and bow down to these angels of mercy”. Al-Amari refugee camp, April 2007 |
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Dr. Khaled
Rasem Ma’tuk, who has worked for many years at Al-Amari clinic,
examines three small babies, triplets: Wrud, Widad and Mohamed. Their
mother, Sundos, watches anxiously, since
her triplets were born prematurely by caesarian two months ago. One of
them, Wrud, is not gaining weight as she should - a serious concern.