The WHO’s representative for the Palestinian territories, Rik Peeperkorn, said in a statement: “the huge surge in the rehabilitation needs among the wounded occurs in parallel with the ongoing decimation of the health system.”
The UN organization reported in a statement that at least 22,500 of the people injured in the Israeli war on Gaza suffer from several serious injuries, with many requiring amputations and others requiring huge rehabilitation services now and for years to come.
It estimated that there had overall been between 13,455 and 17,550 severe limb injuries, which it said were the main driver of the need for rehabilitation.
“Unfortunately, a large part of the rehabilitation workforce in Gaza is displaced,” it added.
The UN report showed that between 3,105 and 4,050 limb amputations had occurred in nearly a year of the Israeli aggression, pointing to other life-altering injuries including spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury and major burn injuries.
Meanwhile, the UN health organization said only 17 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals are currently partially functional, while primary health care services are frequently suspended or inaccessible due to insecurity, attacks and repeated evacuation orders.
It also pointed out that Gaza’s only limb reconstruction and rehabilitation center, located in Nasser Medical Complex and supported by WHO, ceased functioning last December due to lack of supplies and specialized health workers.
“The patients cannot get the care they need,” Peeperkorn said, elaborating that “the rehabilitation services for critical cases are suspended and specialized care is not available for complex injuries, which puts the lives of patients at risk.”