The destruction of the healthcare system
As the crisis continues, the number of casualties needing much more specialist medication increases; that which is used to treat the injuries of war. Regular medicines, too, are in perilously short supply. Emergency hospitals treating the casualties need medicines found in infusion bags or specialist medicated wound dressings; some items must be maintained and transported at specific temperatures or under particular conditions. Those who treat patients must be confident that the medicines they are using are of the required quality and have arrived through the proper channels. They need to know they are safe to use on patients that need them the most.
Help us give them what they need.
Healthcare workers in Gaza urgently need medicines, however, too often, well-meaning providers send large quantities of ‘leftover’ medicines in humanitarian relief efforts. Since little of this has been requested, this ‘push system’ results in waste and does little to provide humanitarian assistance.
Instead, the lifesavers in Gaza can be empowered to describe their specific needs, and when procured centrally, these can ensure that what is sent is exactly what is required. This is what we call the ‘pull system.’
Help us to treat the casualties in Gaza - together.
Pharmacist volunteers across the world have responded by launching a centralised campaign. Healthcare professionals working for the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Gaza have provided us with lists of medicines needed, and we will work to ensure that what is sent is exactly what is required.
Led by their national pharmacists’ organisations, regionally and internationally, pharmacist volunteers are using their expertise around medicines to organise sourcing and the logistics. Your donations will be pooled with those from other countries and used to purchase the required medicines centrally from the most appropriate suppliers and to deliver them safely and directly to where they are needed to support the casualties of Gaza.
As the situation develops and if that critical need recedes, your donations will then be used to support the wider medicines-related needs of the Gaza refugees.
Additionally, when appropriate, pharmacists who are already volunteering from across the world will be given specific training and sent to help in hospitals and refugee centres being established to continue supporting the humanitarian effort.
Working in partnership
Currently, there is no reliable and safe way for medicines to be transported through any borders. However, with increasing international goodwill, it is anticipated that the border crossings will be opened soon, enabling much needed humanitarian aid to flow.
The campaign is now underway and with the support of local charities, the Jordanian Pharmacists’ Association, and other Pharmacy member organisations of the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), funds are already being gathered. Once circumstances allow, the campaign will arrange secure transportation to get the medicines across the border into Gaza under the most optimal conditions.