Interviw with Dr. Khalid Munir
- Posted Category : Interviews
- 4 June 2018
The Surgical Procedures Campaign began at the beginning of Ramadan.
It deals with conducting operations on poor, needy patients who have been waiting for a long time due to the severe pressure on government hospitals and their poor resources because of the imposed siege on Gaza.
To get to know what this campaign entails, we met with Dr. Khalid Munir Khalil, administrative director of Karamah Specialist Hospital.
What do you think about the Surgical Procedures Campaign?
The Surgical Procedures Campaign is a wonderful campaign and a constructive effort in lightening the burdens of patients in Gaza, where the rate of poverty exceeds 33.8%. This is a high figure as compared to past years. This impacts negatively on the patient for whose sake the waiting lists pile up in government hospitals, like Shifa Hospital and Bait Hanoun Hospital.
The idea of the project was as a result of this. The project lightens the patient burden on the ministry’s waiting lists. It also makes it financially easy for the patient by a reduction ranging from 30-70% depending on the level of poverty, which is determined by our social committee.
How has the campaign impacted on hospital patients?
The campaign has contributed to lessening the number of registered patients on the waiting lists of government hospitals. The campaign has also contributed to saving the lives of patients who have been turned away from hospitals in the north and west of Gaza, whose numbers have exceeded 300 000. We have completed about thirty surgical procedures until now.
To what extent do these types of needy campaigns cover poor patients?
These campaigns cover a large extent of poor patient needs, because a poor patient cannot go to a private hospital to have an operation done due to the high cost of the operation. This forces him to wait, even for a long period, for the operation.
Therefore, this project is a constructive project which contributes to lightening the burdens of the poor patients by greatly reducing the cost according to the level of poverty and saving his life.
What are your suggestions to develop these types of campaigns?
Increasing the allocated amount for these types of projects due to the huge number of poor patients requiring operations.
Continuing the project throughout Ramadan and thereafter so that we may continue serving our people and poor patients in Gaza.
Do you have a message for those who have donated towards this campaign?
I send you the greetings of the people of Palestine and especially Gaza. We thank you and appreciate your generous efforts of donating through the Poor Patient Fund for the Ramadan Surgical Procedures Campaign, which contributes to lightening the burdens of poor patients. This is especially during this difficult time where the siege is tightening on the people and organisations of Gaza.
May you remain an asset in charity work.
We ask Allah to place this on your scale of good deeds and we hope this project may continue after Ramadan.
May Allah bless you.
PIMA_SA
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