Feb, 2016
The charitable medical center in the Old City of Hebron administers health care to hundreds of families in the area.
Keeping up a quality service is not always easy and depends on maintaining a supply of vital medicines. Thanks to generosity of donors, Anera has been able to support Palestine clinics through distributions of medicine that help doctors treat ailments from throat inflammations to dental woes.
Mus’ab Natsheh is one very appreciative patient. He’s the eldest son of Halima, the center’s cleaning lady. The 11 year old usually has everyone around him smiling, but one day he was feeling too miserable to spread any joy. He’d been sleepless for several days because of an aching tooth.
After the medical center finished renovations a few years ago, it expanded its services to include a fully equipped dental office. So Mus’ab was in luck. Dentist Qafisheh looked in his mouth and saw right away the youngster had not been cleaning his teeth. “I ran out of toothpaste,” Mus’ab explained, but then admitted he hadn’t really brushed for more than a year.
The doctor couldn’t save the decayed tooth, but he patiently explained to the youngster how to save the rest of his teeth through proper brushing and hygiene. Mus’ab was able to relieve his pain with some Ibupofen in a liquid form that’s easy for children to take. Direct Relief has donated more than 8,000 bottles of the pain reliever, which Anera has distributed to charitable centers and hospitals most in need across the West Bank.
Young Mus’ab was happy to leave the dentist with the medicine, along with a new toothbrush and a reminder to keep his teeth clean. Mus’ab promised to brush his teeth and cut back on sweets, too. “I promise to cut back on chocolate and chips,” Mus’ab says. “But not lemon soda,” he adds mischievously.
Donations Enable Health Centers to Provide Better Care
The clinic’s doctors have welcomed the donated medicines, which allows them to provide free treatments to their impoverished patients. “When you know you can count on your donors to help fill your patients’ needs , we can focus on developing and improving our medical organization,” explains Dr. Wael Al-Rajabi.
“There’s no better time to receive this donation. We had extremely cold weather these past few weeks so we’ve had many patients with upper respiratory infections.”
Patients like Zakariya Ja’bary are benefitting from the center’s development. The 45-year-old was suffering from a severe cough, difficulty in breathing and a slight fever. Dr. Al Rajabi’s examination revealed Zakariya had an inflamed trachea. Thanks to the recent Direct Relief donation, Dr. Rajabi was able to treat the bacterial inflammation with an antibitoic. Anera distributed more than 1,100 packets of the new antibiotic to support Palestine clinics across the West Bank. Thanks to careful planning, the medicine arrived in time to help treat upper respiratory tract infections that are common in the cold winter months.
“There’s no better time to receive this donation,” explained the doctor, “We’ve had extremely cold weather these past few weeks so we’ve had many patients with upper respiratory infections. The donations really help.”
Dr. Rajabi recommends one pill a day for seven days and plenty of rest. The medicine is free of charge. That’s welcome news for Zakariya. “I have to take care of my health for the sake of my family and without the free medicine I couldn’t afford the doctor’s care. If I am sick, who else will provide for my family?”
