Al Jazeera: Expired medicine donated to Gaza

12 August 2010

Al Jazeera - There is no doubt that hospitals in the Gaza Strip are in dire straights, desperately in need of medicine and technology.

However, millions of dollars worth of useless, out-of-date or expired medicine is being sent to the enclave as aid. The expired medicine is ending up in landfills, which are not properly equipped to deal with medical waste.

Gaza's hospitals and clinics relay on international donations, and no one is accusing donors of acting with malice.

But doctors and health officials in Gaza say they want to be consulted before new donations are sent to the Strip to ensure that patients in Gaza are getting what they actually need.

See a Al Jazeera video of this report

MAP Response - As in any humanitarian crisis, there is the problem in Gaza of inappropriate aid entering the territory.

This also applies to the medical sector. As mentioned in the Al Jazeera clip, this is not done out of malice, but in the best intentions of individuals and organisations across the world.

However, despite good intentions much of what is being received is not only unusable, but dangerously inappropriate. Critically needed time and resources are spent sorting stock that can result in delays for other vital shipments to hospitals and health providers.

At Medical Aid for Palestinians, we work directly with the hospitals and clinics to ensure that your donations go towards appropriate and timely supplies. Our team in Gaza works with health providers not only to monitor the current needs in medicine stocks and equipment, but also to coordinate the sorting and distribution of supplies in times of acute emergencies.

During the war on Gaza in 2008-2009, MAP placed teams within the Central Drug Store and at key hospitals throughout Gaza to provide critical support to sort, inventory and distribute key supplies.

We also continue to work with hospitals and health providers to ensure that in the face of ongoing shortages and crisis, the aid that reaches Gaza is a help and not a hindrance.