Monthly Report: Health Access - Barriers for patients in the occupied Palestinian territory, May 2018
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Download document Part 1 Referrals
May Referrals by the Ministry of Health
In May, the Palestinian Ministry of Health approved 2,100 referral requests for Palestinian patients from Gaza to non-Ministry of Health facilities with an estimated cost of 8,895,567 NIS. 45% of referrals were for female patients; 26% were for children under the age of 18 years and 24% were for patients aged 60 years or older. A quarter (25%) of referrals were for cancer treatment and follow up. 1,642 (78%) referrals were for health care outside the Gaza Strip, with 1,488 (71%) requiring access through Erez crossing to Israel and 154 (7%) requiring access through Rafah terminal to Egypt. The remaining 458 (22%) were referred to non-Ministry of Health facilities in Gaza.
Part 2 ACCESS
The Gaza Strip
Of 2,224 applications to cross Erez for health care in May, approximately a third (30%) were for children under age of 18 and almost one in six (17%) were for patients over the age of 60. Just under half (47%) of applications were for female patients and 91% of applications were for medical care funded by the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Approximately three in every five (59%) applications to cross Erez were for appointments in East Jerusalem hospitals, a fifth (22%) were for Israeli hospitals and a fifth (19%) for hospitals in the West Bank. Makassed Hospital (26%) and Augusta Victoria Hospital (25%), both in East Jerusalem, were the receiving hospitals for more than half of referrals. Permit applications for the top five needed specialties accounted for three-fifths of referrals (61%): oncology (29%); cardiology (10%); paediatrics (8%); haematology (8%) and orthopaedics (6%). The remaining 39% were for 24 other specialties.
Approved permit applications: 1,305 (678 male; 627 female), or 59% of the 2,224 applications to cross Erez in May 2018 were approved. Chart 2 shows a 12-month trend of Israeli responses to Gaza patient permit applications. Two in five (38%) of those approved were children under age of 18 and more than a fifth (22%) were elderly people over 60 years of age. Some specialties are more likely to be approved for Israeli permits. In May, 74% of paediatric applications and 70% of cancer applications were approved, in comparison to 36% of orthopaedic applications and 40% of general surgery applications.