Diabetics Get a Vital Medicine in Gaza

Naela, 50, is a mother of four. She has been suffering from Type 2 diabetes, which causes a person's blood sugar levels to become too high, since 2009.

"After giving birth to my daughter, I was diagnosed with diabetes," Naela says. Troublingly, she says “Diabetes medicine hasn’t always been available.”

Diabetes is an all-too-common disease in Gaza. The chronic non-communicable disease occurs when the body cannot make use of the insulin it produces. Proper treatment reduces the likelihood of patients experiencing symptoms like exhaustion, unusual thirst, impaired wound healing and blurred vision.

A recently arrived shipment of a Americares-donated medicines included a combination drug of empagliflozin and metformin vital for diabetes patients in Gaza. The shipping costs were covered by an Islamic Relief USA grant. Anera delivered the medicine to the Society of Physically Handicapped People, where Naela fills her prescription, and 14 other health care facilities.

When combined with a healthy diet and physical exercise, the drug combo is effective at improving glycemic control in adults with Type 2 diabetes.

Naela’s health is important to her, not just because she wants to take care of herself but because her children depend on her. "I have to be strong for my children, even when I'm weak," she says. She hopes that she will always have access to her medication.

Naela is one of nearly 3,500 patients the Society of Physically Handicapped People sees each month. The charitable center provides comprehensive health care and medical rehabilitation for its patients.