 Under The Patronage of
His Royal Highness Sultan Azlan Shah
The Sultan of Perak Darul Ridzuan
MERCY MALAYSIA DEPLOYS SEVENTH TEAM
KUALA LUMPUR, SUNDAY, JANUARY 25, 2009 – MERCY Malaysia, an international NGO which has been present in Egypt since Dec 28 working on getting aid into Gaza, is deploying a 7th mission.
The team of 5 medical experts will depart Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday night. Their main task would be to ensure a continuous shipment of medical aid into the Gaza Strip as well as provide direct support and intervention where it is needed.
The five are: Dr Norherah Syed Omar (Primary Health), Dr Fauziah Mohd Hasan (Obstetrician and Gynaecologist), Ms Reem Saad Osman Bashir (Psychologist), Dr Jeffrey Abu Hassan (Physician) and Prof Mohamed Hatta Shaharom (Psychiatrist).
The psychiatrist and psychologist in the team will be looking at possibilities to start psychological intervention and mental health support programs as part of a broader psychosocial intervention which has been deemed a critical need by both the Palestinian Health authorities as well as major aid agencies such as UNICEF.
The team will be based in El Arish before crossing into Gaza soon after arrival where they will join MERCY Malaysia teams already present in the territory. They are expected to return to Kuala Lumpur on Feb 9.
On Friday, a sixth team comprising MERCY Malaysia medical specialists did a survey on the damage in the Gaza Strip following the three-week Israeli attack.
The team of 8 medical specialists have found that most health infrastructure and facilities have been severely damaged. They are now working at Shahid Annajar Hospital where they are providing mainly expert surgical treatment and intervention.
They have proposed several potential projects that MERCY Malaysia can undertake at the Shahid Annajar Hospital.
MERCY Malaysia Acting President Dr Ahmad Faizal Perdaus said in a statement that MERCY Malaysia is considering several options at the Shahid Annajar Hospital.
“We are looking into building and equipping a rehabilitation unit at the hospital,” he added in the statement.
Another suggestion proposed to MERCY Malaysia was to support an Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp in Rafah for six months, which MERCY Malaysia is also considering.
On Jan 22, MERCY Malaysia sent a team of 6 medical specialists into Gaza. They then joined two colleagues already inside Gaza to conduct the assessment.
He added that where MERCY Malaysia chose to work depended on the people’s needs, the amount of funding available and access to the affected area, among other variables.
“Right now, our team in Gaza is working very hard to identify where and how we can help and we expect our plans to be formalised soon,” said Dr Faizal.
The conflict in the Gaza Strip, which began on Dec 27, escalated over three weeks, killing thousands and injuring even more.
To date, MERCY Malaysia has sent in medical supplies and medicines worth USD 400,000 including sedative agents, antibiotics intravenous solutions, pain killers, as well as a variety of surgical and medical equipment.
Dr Faizal said that MERCY Malaysia was considering procuring ventilators, orthopaedic apparatus and ultrasound machines as the current demand is for more sophisticated medical and surgical equipments such as surgical sets.
MERCY Malaysia has been able to work for the Gaza survivors because of the generous contributions of the Malaysian public.
Please continue to donate to the Palestine Relief Fund through MERCY Malaysia. For CIMB users, make cheques payable to MERCY Malaysia through account number 1424-000-6561053. MAYBANK users may make cheques out to MERCY HUMANITARIAN FUND at account number 5621-7950-4126. Please indicate “Palestine Relief Fund” on the back of the cheque.
For more information, please contact the Communications and Fundraising Department at 03-2273 3399 or Hana Kamaruddin at 019-3040420 or log on to www.mercy.org.my.
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