Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) concluded two new training courses for this year on “Human Rights and Mechanisms to Promote Right to Health”. Twenty-four Members of the Palestinian Physiotherapy Association in Gaza participated in the fifth training course while 25 male and female dentists participated in the sixth training course. The 20-hour training courses were held from 12 to 22 September 2022 in Gaza City.
These training courses are held under “Promote, Respect, and Fulfill the Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health in the Gaza Strip” project implemented by PCHR in partnership with PMRS and funded by the European Union. The project aims to improve access to healthcare, legal counseling, and legal assistance for Palestinian patients; to mainstream the culture of international human rights and humanitarian law, particularly the right to health, by building the capacities of those working in the health sector and right to health activists; and to promote improved monitoring, documenting, and reporting of violations of the right to health.
At the end of the two courses, PCHR held a closing ceremony, where Mr. Jaber Wishah, Member of PCHR’s Board of Directors, stressed the importance of the training program in capacity building of the medical syndicates’ staff to create and prepare medical personnel that would be able to provide proper health care in accordance with human rights standards. Wishah emphasized the genuine role of medical syndicates and healthcare unions in promoting society’s access to health and their ongoing endeavors to improve the health situation in the Gaza Strip. He also called for strengthening the relation between PCHR and the Palestinian Physiotherapy Association and Palestinian Dental Association to empower the medical personnel and develop their capacity in order to enhance their role in defending human rights, especially the right to health.
For his part, Isma’il Abu Jazar, the Supervisor on PMRS’s Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Program, stressed the importance of the continuous work with PCHR to train the highest possible number of medical personnel in issues relevant to the right to health in order to have cadres of educated health personnel and empower them with knowledge and skills necessary for the dissemination of sound health concepts and knowledge in the society in order to improve the quality of life for the individual and for the community.
Dr. Waleed al-Najjar, Vice President of the Palestinian Physiotherapy Association in the Gaza Strip, commended the importance of this cooperation with PCHR in training the medical staff affiliated with the association, hoping that further number of medical staff would be targeted in other training courses to enhance their human rights knowledge and culture, particularly the right to health concepts. He also emphasized integrity and protection of health personnel is fundamental to a robust health system that provides the best and top-quality healthcare service to society.
For his part, Dr. Jamal Saber Khaswan, President of the Palestinian Dental Association, praised PCHR and PMRS’s effective role in following up with all the competent authorities to improve the healthcare conditions in the Gaza Strip despite all circumstances and challenging facing the health system, particularly in the Gaza Strip, triggered by the closure and its repercussions. Dr. Khaswan stressed the importance of ongoing relation and communication with PCHR and strengthening it to have a society fully aware of its rights.
The female and male participants commended this course especially as it was characterized with rich topics and contributed to raising their awareness on human rights in general and the right to health in particular.