Situation in refugee camps in Lebanon

Situation

Since the disruption of the armed conflict in the North / Sunday the 20th of May 2007 between the Lebanese army and Fateh Al Islam groups, PRCS HQ directly coordinated with the director of the PRCS North area Dr. Yussef Al-Assad to asses the situation in the Camp and the preparedness of the PRCS /L clinic at Al-Bared and the Safad Hospital at Beddawi Camp, The clinic was in a hot area and accessibility is dangerous.

Naher Al Bared Camp

A decision was made to use a hall in a Mosque as a field Hospital. PRCS Human resources who lives in the Camp i.e. 3 PRCS doctors and 11 Nurses. Another doctor was deployed from Beirut to Naher Al Bared. A call from the Mosque announced the opening of the PRCS / Fathi Arafat Center to receive patients.

2 ambulances were equipped after coordination with ICRC with the needed medicines and medical supplies

1 ambulance was filled with food

All ambulances entered the Camp

Number of cases received 72 Patients

Number of cases transferred to Safad Hospital 32

Beddawi Camp

Safad Hospital

The PRCS hospital / Safad Hospital at Al Beddawi was from the first moment started to be prepared a 12 hour shift rotation teams were set upped

1 Surgeon and 1 Anesthesiologist were deployed from Haifa Hospital and Hamshari Hospital to Safad Hospital

Number of cases received 130 Patients

Number of cases in hospital 12

Some cases that were injured and are considered not urgent to deal with now were discharged for now, given treatment and scheduled for later management / operations.

Humanitarian needs

The Population of the Camp suffers from lack of water, food and electricity. The needs are huge in this area in addition to the poor sanitation conditions and lack of appropriate shelters, the population is using the ground floors as shelters. PRCS Ambulance provided food and water first but a large number of people surrounded the ambulance which was difficult to handle and a decision was made that other partners plays this role while PRCS concentrates in providing health and emergency services.

Coordination

From the first moment of the conflict the coordination among PRCS, LRC and ICRC did not stop and all activities are achieved around the hours. It was agreed that PRCS ambulances at the entrance of the Al Bared Camp will receive and handle to LRC the patients, medicines and medical supplies, food and other things. LRC then transfers patients to Safad Hospital

Contact persons at

ICRC Miss Sandrine Tiller

LRC Mr. George Ketaneh

Coordination with other NGO's in the Camp

There are three other clinics in the Camp and coordination whenever possible is maintained to refer to the PRCS Center cases for treatment and evacuation and those centers received from PRCS medicines and medical supplies

Other needs

Of course there are huge needs still needed even after what has been done The most urgent need is the displaced people who left Naher AlBared Camp to Beddawi . Today PRCS opened a field center in one school where the displaced people resided to receive and treat those refugees in, for this purpose also PRCS deployed the youth and volunteers coordinator and a social department person to asses and provide assistance. All the PRCS Volunteers in the North area were distributed to both camps.

PRCS met with other local NGO's working in Beirut and International Partners to coordinate activities and decide responsibilities