Meeting Urgent Health Needs in Gaza and the West Bank

Delivering health services in Gaza and the West Bank has always been challenging—but since the escalation of violence in late 2023, the situation has become even more complex and urgent. Anera continues to provide essential care through a network of health facilities and in close coordination with trusted local partners. Our work spans from primary care and maternal health to disability services, mental health, and therapeutic nutrition. We’re doing everything we can to help as many people as possible – and doing it in a way that is both responsive and rooted in the dignity of the people we serve.

Our Gaza Clinics

We currently operate three primary health care centers in Gaza: in Gaza City, Khan Younis and Deir Al Balah. Though these centers are housed in semi-permanent structures, we refer to them as “mobile” because they can be dismantled and relocated quickly in case of evacuation. We aim to deliver long-term services in these locations, especially for patients who require continuity of care.

Our centers house a rotating set of specialty clinics offering internal medicine, ENT, dermatology, orthopedics, physiotherapy, lab services and wound management. We’ve also prioritized care for women and children, particularly those who have experienced trauma and war-related injuries. We now provide digital case management systems that link doctors, pharmacies and patient files – significantly improving follow-up and treatment accuracy. But this has also created new needs: each doctor requires a laptop, which are very scarce and costly (~$3,000) in Gaza these days.

In addition to Anera’s fixed sites, we operate outreach teams. Our physiotherapy team travels to informal tent camps to treat displaced individuals. We also run outreach sessions to improve maternal and child health, delivering health education and awareness sessions in underserved communities.

Maternal, Child, and Infant Health Services

We run two specialized mother and child health clinics, located in Al-Nasr and Tal Al Hawa, away from other major health providers. These clinics are crucial to meeting the needs of pregnant women, new mothers and children in neighborhoods where access to care has collapsed. Through our partner Al Sahaba, we also support an infant and young child feeding center in Gaza City. These facilities conduct nutrition screenings and provide therapeutic feeding to malnourished children and pregnant or lactating women.

We recently added portable ultrasounds to improve prenatal and postnatal care. These kinds of tools are difficult to find and expensive to source, but they make a life-saving difference. In the past, we operated with paper records – when paper was still available! Today, digital health systems, solar power, water barrels, toilets and infrastructure rehabilitation are all necessary parts of what it takes to deliver quality care. The needs have evolved, and so must we.

Supplying the Clinics

Maintaining a steady supply of medicines and medical equipment is one of our greatest challenges. Initially, Anera’s medical donation program provided much of what we needed. But as access through crossings became more difficult, we had to rely more on local procurement.

That local procurement is expensive and complicated. Gaza’s pharmaceutical supply chain has been decimated, and prices are significantly higher. Solar batteries, generators and essential medications are very limited. Still, we’ve managed to keep clinics operational by identifying reliable suppliers and even bartering with other non-profit organizations to exchange surplus items. When one organization has extra hypertension medication and we have excess antibiotics, we trade. Our network – with groups like IMC, IRC, and others – has been essential in keeping our operations afloat.

Disability and Rehabilitation Services

In the West Bank, Anera is expanding its focus on disability services. After airstrikes in Jenin and Tulkarem, we partnered with Al Jaleel Society to deliver prosthetics, rehabilitation and psychosocial support to individuals and families affected by amputations. Despite forced eviction and destruction of their center in Jenin camp, Al Jaleel continued working in temporary spaces, and Anera is supporting their relocation and expansion, including into provision of hearing aids and other assistive technologies.

We also work with the Bethlehem Arab Society for Rehabilitation, the only functioning cardiology center in the southern West Bank. They provide heart care and community-based rehabilitation for people with disabilities in Hebron, Jericho and Bethlehem. As mobility restrictions and gate closures isolate villages from services, our goal is to strengthen local infrastructure and launch outreach programs so that families can receive care without leaving their communities.

Working Together, Moving Forward

Anera is a proud member of the health and nutrition clusters and their many working groups, including those focused on trauma care, mental health, rehabilitation, and maternal health. We coordinate with peer organizations and strive to complement—not duplicate—their work.

The truth is, we can’t do this alone. And we’re not trying to.

Local organizations and frontline staff are the heart of this work. They know their communities. They’ve stayed in place despite danger and loss. Our job is to stand beside them—to amplify their impact, strengthen their services, and make sure the people of Gaza and the West Bank get the care they deserve.

Funding Needs and Donor Strategy

With so many urgent needs, a key question is: how can Anera’s donors help in the most impactful ways possible?

To be honest, what has saved us many times is flexible funding – the kind that isn’t tied to a specific project or location. These funds have allowed us to bridge shortfalls when a grant runs out or a clinic suddenly faces a supply shortage. Listening to our teams and local partners on the ground helps us identify the most urgent gaps. We also draw from data collected through health and nutrition clusters to shape our priorities.

We’ve developed costed action plans that help us track exactly what each clinic or program costs and what support we need. For example, operating a primary health care center costs about $22,000 to $23,000 per month. That includes everything from salaries and medications to laptops, solar panels, tarps, guards for safety and basic hygiene infrastructure. Every item is essential, especially when you’re treating wounds in a sandstorm or storing vaccines in a warzone.

Support in any amount  –  whether a $10 monthly donation or a $100 one-time gift – from Anera’s loyal community of donors will help these vital health services continue. 

A Future Built on Care

In moments of crisis, healthcare is more than a service, it’s life. Every clinic we keep open, every medicine we deliver, every child we nourish is an act of defiance against despair. It says: you matter, you are not forgotten, and there is still hope.

We are not just responding to needs. We are helping communities hold onto their dignity, rebuild trust, and protect the possibility of a better tomorrow.

So when you support Anera’s health programs in Gaza and the West Bank, you are not just funding a clinic. You are investing in life, and a future that refuses to be defined by war.

Thank you for standing with us. The work continues, and with you beside us, so does the hope.