PHM-Exch> Fwd: Bulletin #67: One hundred days of attacks on health in Gaza

[Ana Vračar]

This fortnight Israeli attacks on healthcare in the Gaza Strip have
persisted for the 100th consecutive day. Hospitals in Gaza are struggling
due to shortages of medicines and medical supplies. They remain under
threat from snipers and sieges by Israeli Occupying Forces. UN agencies are
raising alarms as they are unable to deliver sufficient supplies to health
centers, citing a lack of security guarantees and cooperation from the
Israeli authorities. The risk of infections and outbreaks steadil

Bulletin #67: One hundred days of attacks on health in Gaza
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/12e58089?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
By People's Health Dispatch • 14 Jan 2024 View in browser
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/5d3686e7?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
View in browser
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/0d0b5bdb?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

This fortnight

Israeli attacks on healthcare in the *Gaza Strip*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/e01dfd3c?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
have persisted for the 100th consecutive day. Hospitals in Gaza are
struggling due to shortages of medicines and medical supplies. They remain
under threat from snipers and sieges by Israeli Occupying Forces. UN
agencies are raising alarms as they are unable to deliver sufficient
supplies to health centers, citing a lack of security guarantees and
cooperation from the Israeli authorities. The risk of *infections *
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/db479bd6?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>and
outbreaks steadily grows as thousands of people gather in overcrowded
shelters and camps.

In *Kenya*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/7d8771dd?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>,
President William Ruto's health reform package has encountered opposition
from civil society organizations, including the local chapter of the
People’s Health Movement. These groups are actively working to ensure that
the proposed laws undergo proper public consultation before being
implemented.

Safeguarding and strengthening public health systems has proven crucial
during the *COVID-19*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/e0bce85d?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
pandemic. Although public health systems and workers bore the brunt of the
pandemic, governments have yet to adequately recognize their contributions.
While the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths has decreased from peak
levels, the World Health Organization emphasizes the continued importance
of governments monitoring the virus's spread and ensuring access to
vaccines.

The impact of COVID-19 has disproportionately affected poor and
working-class communities, reflecting long standing health inequities. In
the *United Kingdom*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/bad41c17?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>,
these health disparities continue to widen.

Health disparities between the rich and the poor extend beyond health
indicators. Poor communities also bear the brunt of the cost-of-living
crisis, struggling to afford essential food products. Almost two years
after the closure of a production facility in Michigan led to a
shortage of *baby
formula*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/8958f3da?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
in the United States, families still face challenges affording an adequate
supply of infant formula.
------------------------------
In focus: Health in Palestine

*Gaza’s heath workers and aid agencies face impossible choices*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/913dd443?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

Health workers are at grave risk while trying to provide care to the tens
of thousands who are injured due to Israel’s brutal attacks. Both they and
aid agencies are also faced with extremely tough choices on how to
distribute the scarce medical supplies that are remaining

*Israel is decimating Gaza’s health infrastructure as disease threatens the
majority of its population*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/88c2f9de?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

The public health situation among people displaced by Israeli attacks
worsens by the day, as targeting of health workers and infrastructure
continues
------------------------------
Featured articles

*President Ruto’s healthcare reform stands trial in Kenya*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/e4520bee?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

Right-to-health organizations in Kenya continue to oppose a set of
healthcare reforms that is being pushed through legislation without
consultations with the public

*COVID-19 has killed more than 7 million people since 2020*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/3113ac35?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

While COVID-19 has disappeared from front pages, the virus is still
claiming thousands of lives each month. The WHO warns against complacency
and urges continuation of vaccination

*Health inequities continue to widen in the UK*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/1f8234a8?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

A new report indicates that health and social inequities in the UK are
having a devastating effect on quality of life and mortality rates. While
the health gap between poorer and richer communities has been a concern for
a long time, the report shows that its consequences are worse than
anticipated

*Baby formula prices and production practices impact availability*
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/f63da0fc?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>

Persistent issues in baby formula production and pricing continue to impact
families. As prices rise, carers are struggling to feed infants in many
parts of the Global North
------------------------------
Data speaks
------------------------------
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Roundup: Zambian capital sees surging cholera cases, health system
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<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/c55ab7fb?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
Dodging dengue in its Backyard, Uttar Pradesh’s Bansa Manages Waste Through
Action, Education | NewsClick
While the entire state was on alert in September last year due to an
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the panchayat’s concerted efforts to manage solid and liquid waste
efficiently
Newsclick •Aishwarya Tripathi
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/a6273db2?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
In Lebanon, fighting threatens health system already on the brink
Escalating violence between Israeli forces and Hezbollah has forced
thousands to flee, adding further strain to Lebanon’s fragile health system.
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) •Doctors Without
Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/2942cbce?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
Impact of the armed conflict in Colombia: consequences in the health
system, response and challenges - Colombia
Analysis in English on Colombia about Health; published on 3 Jan 2024 by BMC
ReliefWeb
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/6ff21d0b?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
Can Family Doctors Deliver Rural America From Its Maternal Health Crisis? -
KFF Health News
Family medicine doctors already deliver most of rural America’s babies, and
efforts to train more in obstetrics care are seen as a way to cope with
labor and delivery unit closures.
KFF Health News •Sarah Jane Tribble
<https://peoples-health-dispatch.ghost.io/r/22d941ef?m=a33219b1-51ba-4205-9e52-d0a232aa67c2>
*People’s Health Dispatch is an initiative of Peoples Dispatch and the
People's Health Movement*
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