Project Rozana Chair Ron Finkel AM said:

Investing in Palestinian civil society and infrastructure helps to build capacity and resilience. In particular, this program assists Palestinians to provide healthcare in remote communities that are currently vastly underserviced. Our goal is to provide Palestinian women with the medical care they need, wherever they are located, and to bridge geographic, political and cultural gaps in a shared vision of optimal health outcomes.

The project is operating in Area C, which constitutes over 60% of the West Bank and is home to 3.3 million Palestinians. The World Health Organization and other regional healthcare stakeholders have identified 145,000 women and children from rural communities in the area as, ‘at risk.’ This is due to limited or no access to primary healthcare caused by inadequate infrastructure, transportation complexities and financial and cultural barriers.

A holistic team in the Women4Women pilot program  includes nurses, a midwife, physiotherapist, psychologist, nutritionist, pediatrician and dentist who are being trained to use devices to address women’s physical, mental and social wellbeing.

The Women4Women team includes nutritionist Raghod Amro, pictured here with Project Rozana Israel Executive Director, Ronit Zimmer. Amro said,

Today we did a lecture on nutrition and dental health for the children of the summer camp in Deir Al-Asal, and it was a very good beginning. We love what we do!

A remote obstetrics and gynaecology unit in the rural Hebron area will be fully operated by Palestinian healthcare teams. The goal is to provide women with the care they need wherever they are located. Telehealth services will help to bridge political and cultural gaps and female health workers will help to mitigate cultural concerns about male doctors treating women.

Dr Anna Doufesh, a gynaecologist in Hebron, visited the Women4Women pilot program in July. Dr Doufesh (pictured) tested the GE Point of Care Ultrasound that will be used in the program. This remote care device means that she will be able to capture vital information from her desk at the hospital in Hebron at the same time as the team at Sheba Hospital.

Project Rozana’s Women’s Health Initiative provides much-needed health services in the West Bank for women.

In July 2022, Project Rozana’s Women4Women initiative received international media coverage.

Oncology was the first specialty area of focus for course participants, with an emphasis on the diagnosis, treatment and management of cancer patients. This is much needed as the gaps in the Palestinian healthcare system currently result in long waiting lists and delayed care for oncology patients and many referrals to hospitals abroad. The emphasis in the Specialist Nursing Training on techniques for clinical management will have an immediate impact.

Alongside the focus area, an important by-product of the training initiative is the sharing of experiences between the Israeli and Palestinian nurses as well as the knowledge sharing between the region’s healthcare systems.

Jawad Abu Sabha, a registered nurse at AVH, noted the efficiency of the system he witnessed in action at HMO, whereby wait times are reduced because patients first communicate with a nurse who can provide immediate care – for example, hydration – while the patient is waiting to see the doctor.

Jawad says,

It is better for the patient, the doctor and the nurses!

Jawad discussed this observation with Project Rozana Chair Ron Finkel AM. Ron said,

This is a great example of the sharing of experience which is part of what we want to achieve from the Specialist Nursing Training program. The nurse is the important introduction to the hospital and plays a vital role. 

Positive feedback regarding the training program was also highlighted by AVH nurses Waa’d and Faten (pictured in the top image).
Waa’d said:

It allows us to visit another hospital to learn what are the strategies that can make a difference between yours and our hospital and to know what are the new things we can add to our hospital to give better service (to patients).

Jawad discussed this observation with Project Rozana Chair Ron Finkel AM. Ron said,

This is a great example of the sharing of experience which is part of what we want to achieve from the Specialist Nursing Training program. The nurse is the important introduction to the hospital and plays a vital role. 

In the words of Project Rozana Israel Executive Director Ronit Zimmer (pictured):

The series of ATLS courses has so many beneficial components, from upskilling the participating physicians; providing the Palestinian surgeons access to the course which they would otherwise not have; bringing Israeli and Palestinian physicians together for the first time and sharing the learning experience; and laying the groundwork for trauma systems within Palestinian hospitals, to ultimately creating a regional hub of 120 Israeli and Palestinian traumatologists who can consult in real time and together advance trauma treatment in our region.

The Rotary-funded program is jointly led by the Israeli head of trauma at Wolfson Hospital in Holon, Dr Adam Goldstein (pictured centre), and Palestinian anesthesiologist at Hadassah Hospital, Dr Tamer Abu Jreis.

The July seminar had 22 participants from major hospitals on both sides of the border. Training side-by-side, they included resident anesthesiologists from Hadassah; Al Ahli Hospital thoracic surgeons; Wolfson Hospital plastic surgeons and ENT specialists; Sheba Medical Center urologists and Ichilov Hospital emergency physicians.

An exciting learning bonus was the presentation by visiting world-class trauma physician, Dr William P. Schecter (pictured), Professor of Clinical Surgery at the UCSF Division of Surgery at San Francisco General Hospital.

It was a heartwarming experience for Israel Rotary members and Project Rozana Israel staff who had the opportunity to observe first-hand the second training seminar and meet participants.

Three more ATLS courses will be held during 2022, as well as an academic trauma conference for the participants. A pleasing outcome from the pilot held in December 2021 and the May and July courses, is that pass rates are high across the board.

Additional benefits for participants are the monthly online forums that enable trainers and trainees to share cases and directly consult with one another, as well as the WhatsApp group for real-time consultations. These additions help maintain the strong professional and warm personal relationships established during the training.

The ATLS Training Program builds professional trust, mutual respect and better understanding between Israelis and Palestinians.