UK rehabilitation teams travel to Gaza to provide specialist support to people injured during the crisis
London, 10th September 2014. The first of three teams of rehabilitation specialists, including physiotherapists, occupational therapists and nurses, has this week been deployed to Gaza to support people injured during the recent conflict and provide training to local rehabilitation staff.
Over 11,000 Palestinians were injured during the crisis and some specialist rehabilitation facilities in Gaza were damaged or destroyed. There is now an urgent need for specialised training and equipment so that local staff can provide the best possible care to people with complex injuries including amputations, spinal cord injuries and fractures. This aftercare can be life-saving and is the key to helping those with significant injuries maximise their recovery, so that they can raise their families, work, or go back to school.
The teams, drawn mostly from the NHS, are members of the UK International Emergency Trauma Register (UKIETR) which trains British medical and health professionals to deploy to humanitarian emergencies. Run by the charity UK-Med and funded by the Department for International Development, the Register is also supported by Handicap International and Save the Children. The deployment of rehabilitation experts to Gaza will not only have a long term impact on those they treat and train, but will also benefit their practice in the UK.
Peter Skelton, Handicap International rehabilitation project manager says, “This exciting collaboration between Handicap International and UK-Med in training rehabilitation staff on the Trauma Register means that we are building a team of experienced clinicians trained to a high standard who are able to provide specialised support to communities affected by emergencies. To have this capability in the UK builds on the incredible professionals the NHS has and enables us to support those people most in need, such as injured people in Gaza today.”
Rosalie Barrett, clinical lead physiotherapist at Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust, says, “Through our training with the trauma register we have a fantastic opportunity to use our professional skills and work alongside our colleagues on the ground in Gaza to provide training and rehabilitation for those who have been injured.”
Whilst in Gaza, the UK teams will be embedded in Handicap International’s existing outreach teams, who have been working throughout the crisis to provide rehabilitation and other essential services to the most vulnerable people. The project is funded by the Department for International Development.
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Notes
About UK-Med
UK-Med was established in 1995 to facilitate the provision of UK health workers to support the hospitals in Sarajevo during the Balkans war. Subsequently it has despatched teams to a range of countries and crises, including Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Haiti, the Philippines and Jordan. UK-Med supports education and training for health workers in developing countries and continues to facilitate the provision of UK healthcare workers who volunteer their services to countries during conflict and catastrophe. www.uk-med.org
About Handicap International
Co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, Handicap International is an independent charity working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. We work tirelessly alongside disabled and vulnerable people in over 60 countries worldwide. www.handicap-international.org.uk
About the UKIETR
The UK International Emergency Trauma Register (UKIETR) is hosted by UK-Med. It brings together surgeons, anaesthetists, emergency physicians/nurses and other supporting medical, nursing and paramedical personnel who are interested in responding to large scale emergencies overseas.
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