麻豆APP

occupied Palestinian territory, issued 15?October 2020
Information for period: 5 March – 15?October 2020

Highlights

• Planning is progressing to prepare the health system?to secure?COVID-19 vaccine?– once available –?for most vulnerable?target groups?in Palestine
• Government of Germany provides $1 million?to?support the?COVID-19 response

WHO is continuing to work with partners to support Ministry of Health’s (MoH) efforts to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak.

?Coordination,?planning?and monitoring???

• WHO,?UNICEF and other key partners?support?the?MoH?in development of the COVID-19 vaccine deployment plan to ensure?a?smooth introduction of COVID-19 vaccine once it would become?available
• Palestine is among the 92 countries to receive funding for procurement of COVID-19 vaccines through?the??supported by GAVI and other partners.
• The funding will cover up to 20% of vaccine needs,?prioritising?vulnerable groups: health and social workers, people above 65 years and those under 65 with underlying conditions
• In the Gaza Strip?a?curfew is still in place in all governorates from 20:00 to 07:00
• Around 35,000 Tawjihi (senior high) students returned to school?under strict precautionary measures, on 10 October,?as an initial step to resuming school attendance, in the Gaza Strip
• The lockdown?in Israel, affecting East Jerusalem,?has been extended?until?October 18
• WHO continues to support the coordination?for?import?and delivery of essential?equipment:
  • This month, WHO has delivered 20 COVID-19 extraction kits?(for?20,000 tests)?and 22,000 swabs?to?Gaza
  • Six defibrillators?were?delivered to?MoH?in Ramallah on 15 October
  • 10 oxygen concentrators were delivered to local health authorities in the Gaza Strip on 15 October (see image).

• The WHO risk assessment remains very high?as the?number of people testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 continues to?increase
• ?From 1-15?October, the total number of COVID-19 cases rose by?6,900?cases (on average 460?cases per day).?Four hundred and?seventy-one?have died, with an overall case fatality rate (CFR) of 0.82%.

• A total of?463,427?laboratory samples have been tested for COVID-19.

• 15,200?Palestinians are in quarantine (home or facility-based) to prevent further spread of the disease
• In the Gaza Strip,?147?people are in one of?three?quarantine facilities which include health?facilities,?hotels?and other designated buildings
• WHO is supporting the?MoH?to train 60 junior doctors and 200 nurses on intensive care?treatment protocols?to enhance?capacity to manage critical?patients. Lectures?and practical training?will be conducted?over a three-week period?and?continue with mentoring in?hospital?settings.?This training was supported by?the Government of Canada
• WHO continues to coordinate and support the delivery of vital medical equipment for the COVID-19 response across Gaza and the West Bank (see images for details).

Fear, anxiety and social isolation associated with COVID-19 has placed Palestinians under immense and unprecedented pressure, putting their physical, mental and social well-being at risk. This, in turn, has increased the pressure on those with mental health disorders, such as psychosis and depression, and increased demand on psychotropic drugs.??

In response, WHO with the support of the Government of Canada, has?delivered essential psychotropic drugs to treat 3,000 people in the Gaza Strip suffering from mental, neurological and substance use disorders for six months. The delivery of these drugs to local health authorities in the Gaza Strip is part of WHOs support to develop mental health services and strengthen the mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Gaza.?