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Coronavirus disease 2019?(COVID-19) Situation Report 36

occupied Palestinian territory, issued 16?July?2020
Information for period: 5 March – 16?July?2020

Highlights

• The number of people testing positive for COVID-19 continues to surge in the West Bank with an average of 365 new cases per day since July 1
• WHO has visited Hebron to consult with the governor and health teams on support priorities for this most affected governorate

WHO preparedness, readiness and response

WHO is continuing to work with partners to support Ministry of Health’s (MoH) efforts to respond to the COVID-19 situation in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).

Coordination,?planning?and monitoring

• The Humanitarian Coordinator and key partners continue efforts to address the clearance of humanitarian shipments and to coordinate access of medical referral patients from Gaza to essential services outside following the suspension of bilateral agreements and coordination in response to Israel’s threatened annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank.

Feature: WHO visits Hebron to support the COVID-19 response?

The Governor of Hebron?Mr?Jibreen?Al Bakri welcomed WHO at?his?offices?this week

• WHO met with the Governor of Hebron and members of the governorates’
  COVID-19 crisis committee and the Ministry of Health, on July 15 at the municipality offices in Hebron to discuss the governorate’s response, needs and challenges in light of the surge in COVID-19 cases
• Governor Mr Jibreen Al Bakri and members of the COVID-19 crisis committee he leads, including private and public hospital directors, briefed WHO’s Head of office, Dr Gerald Rockenschaub and his staff and highlighted their concern about the likely further rise in cases numbers over the coming weeks
• Health professionals voiced concern over an anticipated increase of patients with severe disease mainly among vulnerable groups ?(including the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions) and are focusing on expanding the capacity of four hospitals in the governorate: Dura Governmental Hospital, Alia Governmental Hospital, Yatta Governmental Hospital and Muktaseb hospitals to manage cases and to scale up testing capacity
• The meeting highlighted the significant challenges for the governorate in controlling the further spread of COVID-19, including the movement of workers and families between Israel and the West Bank; lack of adherence of some communities to public health preventive measures; some delay and backlog ?of tests pending processing over capacity gaps and?remaining resource constraints to support case management, including the isolation of confirmed cases; and lack of equipment and supplies for intensive care management of critical cases
• WHO and partners, in close consultation with the Ministry of Health, are targeting the population of the most affected governorates with health advice and messages to reinforce and encourage adherence to personal protective measures and supporting governorates to address their challenges by procuring the key medical equipment for critical case management.

Surveillance

• The WHO risk assessment remains very high for the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt)
• The total number of cases is?8,616 including 8,544 cases in the West Bank and?72?in the Gaza Strip, no new cases reported in Gaza in this period
• The number of people testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 continues to increase
• Since 1 July (to 16 July) the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) has averaged 365 cases per day, with 5,851 new cases and 40 fatalities
• Most cases recorded are from Hebron (5,370), East Jerusalem (1,204), Bethlehem (503), Ramallah (498), Jerusalem (494) and Nablus (244). Other governorates (Salfit, Qalqiliya, Tubas, Tulkarm, Jenin) continue to record low case numbers. A total of 81 health workers are among those confirmed cases
• Seventeen patients are in a serious condition, with six patients requiring mechanical ventilation (as of 16 July)
• To-date, the Ministry of Health (MoH) reported a total of 1,487 cases have recovered: 1,424 in the West Bank (including 174 in East Jerusalem) and 63 in Gaza. Forty-nine people have died, with an overall case fatality rate (CFR) of 0.57%
• Less than half (47%) of all confirmed cases are male (3,330 cases) and about 81% of all cases (5,330?cases) are below the age of 50 years in the oPt, excluding East Jerusalem.

Laboratory diagnostics??

WHO?delivered??tests?and reagents for almost 8,000 people?in the Gaza?Strip.?Thanks to??for their generous support.?

• A total of?147,494?laboratory samples?have?been tested for COVID-19 according to the?MoH,?with?13,387?samples tested in the Gaza Strip
• WHO is?contributing?to??a?stable supply of COVID-19 testing kits and reagents for people suspected of having COVID-19 in the Gaza?Strip.?This week,?with generous support from the?,?WHO?delivered?tests and reagents?to benefit?8,000 people?(pictured).?WHO?continues?to support authorities in Gaza and the West Bank?in?scaling?up?their?testing capacity to quickly identify, isolate and trace people with COVID-19, in order?to prevent further spread of the?disease.

Infection Prevention and Control (IPC),?Isolation?and Case Management, Operations Support and Logistics?

WHO and MDM France have delivered essential?supplies including disposable gowns, masks and disinfectants to support?PRCS?emergency medical teams in the Gaza Strip to implement adequate infection prevention and control measures during the COVID-
19 outbreak.

• 30,244?Palestinians are in quarantine (home or facility-based) to prevent further spread of the disease
• In?the?Gaza?Strip,?261?people are in one of the six?quarantine?or treatment?facilities which include health facilities,?hotels or other designated buildings
• Pallets of?disposable gowns, masks, disinfectants and water pumps for five ambulance stations were among?supplies that have been delivered this month by MDM?France,?supported by WHO,?to Palestine Red Crescent Society, the main frontline emergency medical service provider in the Gaza Strip. These supplies are essential to protect 150 health workers and help them implement adequate infection prevention and control measures during the COVID-19 outbreak.?Thanks to EU aid?for their generous support.

East Jerusalem?

• As of July?16?(11:00), the?Ministry of Health reported?1,204?COVID-19 cases in East Jerusalem. Three deaths have been reported?(CFR- 0.25%)?and 174 have recovered in the same period
• Hospitals?of?the?East Jerusalem Hospital Network?(EJHN)?continue to receive COVID-19 patients at three designated hospitals.?At Al-Makassad Hospital, two?people with?COVID-19?are being treated. Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH) is providing care to three COVID-19 patients in its isolated ward (who were already admitted and subsequently were diagnosed with COVID-19). In terms of capacity, AVH has 12?dedicated?beds, of which four?can provide intensive care including
  ventilator?treatment. St. Joseph Hospital has?currently?no?acute?COVID-19 patients. It has prepared an isolated COVID-19 ward with 28 beds, of which 12?provide the?possibility?for?ventilator?treatment. In total, 15 health workers from?these three hospitals?have been?infected with COVID-19.??(Update?by the EJHN as of July?7).

Risk Communication and Community Engagement?(RCCE)

These social media cards are part of the COVID-19 RCCE campaign supported by the UN, NGOs and private sector. The left card?advises on how to?manage stress and the second card?promotes everyone’s right?to access essential health services during?COVID-19?

• RCCE continues?in response to the surge in COVID-19 cases in the West Bank
• WHO, UNICEF?and the MOH are focusing communication?efforts?with?media and NGOs around Hebron and Nablus to disseminate public health messages to help?control?the spread of COVID-19
• Latest?key?messages?focus on preventative measures (staying home, physical distancing, protecting the vulnerable, wearing masks correctly, hand washing); health advice for?health?workers?and those?in home?quarantine; mental health support and stigma
• cards,?videos?and?messages?and contact Alice Plate to get involved in dissemination:?platea@who.int