Mobile Clinics
Mobile clinics meet a very real need for many Palestinians whose access to basic health and medical services is compromised by checkpoints and frequent closures.
But they are a very expensive 'work-around' solution to the restrictions on movement imposed by the occupation. Dedicated and often over-qualified teams of medical staff can themselves lose valuable hours delayed by road closures and checkpoints, while follow-up care requiring hospital treatment remains problematic.
The clinics perform an essential role, but they do not address the fundamental issue of access to healthcare and are not sustainable in the long term.
Eye clinics
St John's Eye Hospital in Jerusalem specialises in the provision of ophthalmic care. In recent years the number of people visiting St John's has declined, not because there are fewer patients in need of treatment, but because of the extreme difficulties would-be patients face in reaching the hospital.
For those already living in rural or isolated communities, access to ophthalmic care is made even more difficult by checkpoints, the West Bank Wall and frequent closures. For many St John's the only available eye care services.
In 2004-2005, 5,000 underwent at least one eye examination by MAP-funded clinics run by St John's Eye Hospital.
Medical and healthcare for bedouin communities
Most Bedouin in and around Jericho now live in overcrowded, 'semi-permanent' encampments made from scraps of wood and corrugated sheeting. Restrictions on movement, checkpoints and other barriers prevent them travelling freely and their communites are isolated and far from main roads. Water supply supply is ad hoc and there is generally no electricity.
Bedouin healthcare is compromised by a general lack of development. This is particularly true of women most of whom leave school by the age of 11 and rarely leave their communities. It is not uncommon to find women who are unable to read and write and have no knowledge of basic healthcare, reproductive health, hygiene or diet.
In 2004-5, mobile clinics reached 12,000 Bedouin women and children living in eight villages and 16 Bedouin encampments in the Jericho governorate. Operated by MAP's partner organisation, al-Islah Charitable Society, they provided much needed healthcare and education to communities, mostly women and children.