Skip to content
Anera
  • Who We Are
    • Column1
      • About Us
      • Our Staff
      • Anera FAQ
    • Column2
      • Resources
      • 2022 Annual Report
      • Contact Us
  • Where We Work
    • Column1
      • Palestine
        • Gaza
        • West Bank
      • Lebanon
      • Jordan
  • What We Do
    • Column1
      • Agriculture
      • Health
      • Community
      • Education
    • Column2
      • Water
      • Emergency
      • Our Priorities
      • Stories
      • Videos
  • How to Help
    • Column1
      • Fundraise
      • Become a Social Media Ambassador
      • Attend an Event
      • Donor Portal
    • Column2
      • Give Monthly
      • More Ways to Give
      • Zakat Giving
      • Anera Leadership Circle
  • Blog
  • Donate
    • Monthly Giving
    • Zakat Giving
    • More Ways to Give
Anera
Donor Portal
  • Who We Are
    • Column1
      • About Us
      • Our Staff
      • Anera FAQ
    • Column2
      • Resources
      • 2022 Annual Report
      • Contact Us
  • Where We Work
    • Column1
      • Palestine
        • Gaza
        • West Bank
      • Lebanon
      • Jordan
  • What We Do
    • Column1
      • Agriculture
      • Health
      • Community
      • Education
    • Column2
      • Water
      • Emergency
      • Our Priorities
      • Stories
      • Videos
  • How to Help
    • Column1
      • Fundraise
      • Become a Social Media Ambassador
      • Attend an Event
      • Donor Portal
    • Column2
      • Give Monthly
      • More Ways to Give
      • Zakat Giving
      • Anera Leadership Circle
  • Blog
  • Donate
    • Monthly Giving
    • Zakat Giving
    • More Ways to Give
  • Who We Are
  • What We Do
  • Where We Work
  • How to Help
  • Resources
  • Success Stories
  • Videos
  • Blog
  • 2022 Annual Report
Donate
HEALTH

When Health Care is a Privilege: Access to Medicine in Nahr El Bared

Ibtisam Loubani is a 36-year-old mother of seven living in Nahr El Bared Camp, northern Lebanon. She feeds her family with the modest income she gathers as a private tutor.

This is her family’s sole source of income, as Ibtisam’s husband is disabled after suffering from a stroke a few years ago.

Ibtisam’s family is among the 176,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon designated as poor or extremely poor, which amounts to about 73% of the total Palestinian refugee population there. And according to UNRWA, all Palestinians in Lebanon with a disabled head of household– like the Loubanis — live in extremely poor conditions. That means they live on no more than $2.17 per day.

176,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are classified as poor or extremely poor, living on less than $2.17 per day.

Proper access to health care is of the biggest challenges Ibtisam faces, since the little money she makes is barely enough to feed her family. For this vulnerable family, health care is a privilege. Meals for Ibtisam’s children are prioritized over any medicine that costs more than a day’s worth of money.

Donated Medicine Lends a Helping Hand

Due to the poor socio-economic status of many Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, AmeriCares recently donated a shipment of Mebendazole tablets, a medicine used to treat a number of parasitic worm infestations. Ideally, this medicine is prescribed twice per year to everyone over the age of 14 as a preventive measure. With this in-kind donation, the medicine will be available in all of the Palestinian refugee camps for the next year.

Many patients are not able to pay for both medical consultation and medicine, said the physician Dr. Hasan Barakeh. “Even if a clinic offers free consultation, it will be worthless if the medicine isn’t available.” This was also emphasized by Ibtisam, who wished that vital medicines like antibiotics were always on-hand.

 

"If the medicine wasn’t available in the clinic, I wouldn’t be able to afford it for my family.”

Ibtisam and four of her children came to the clinic of the National Institute of Social Care and Vocational Training in Nahr El Bared Camp to take their biannual dosage. The clinic is nestled in an underprivileged area in the camp that is beyond UNRWA’s area of operations. An estimated 11,200 people use the clinic for dental care, reproductive health, pediatrics and mental health.

“I usually try my best to follow the doctor’s recommendations of taking Mebendazole twice per year,” said Ibtisam. “But if it wasn’t available in the clinic, I wouldn’t be able to afford it for my family.”

SHARE THIS STORY

Related Stories

Ibrahim

Preserving Dignity and Health Through Compassionate Care

Read More →
Alaa the pharmacist dispenses medicines.

Restoring Humanity in Lebanon Through the CARMAH Project

Read More →
  • 0%
of revenue spent on programs in Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan

Contact Us

WHO WE ARE

Site Map

  • Who We Are
  • Where We Work
  • What We Do
  • How to Help
  • Donor Portal
  • Blog
  • Resources
  • Stories
  • Join Our Team

More About Anera

Anera addresses the development and relief needs of refugees and vulnerable communities in Palestine and Lebanon. 

Anera is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (tax-ID number 52-0882226). Your gift is secure and tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Follow Us on Social Media

© Anera, 2023 | Print This Page | Site Credit
  • FAQ
  • TRUSTED & RESPECTED
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • SITE MAP
 Share This
 Facebook
 WhatsApp
 LinkedIn
 Email