Long road to recovery for war-wounded children Gaza

In early May, Deema was at last able to travel to the south of Gaza, where she was reunited with her mother and Hazem in Rafah. One week later they were medically evacuated, first to Egypt and then to MSF’s hospital in Amman, where Deema and Hazem continue to receive reconstructive surgery, physiotherapy and mental health support. 
 
Deema suffered fractures to her right femur and shoulder, as well as an open wound to her forehead, as a result of the attack on her home. In Amman, she is working daily with the MSF physiotherapy team to encourage her fractured bones to heal before the external fixator in her leg can be removed. With time, she hopes to be able to regain full function of her limbs.

“I wasn’t able to move my ankle or my arm when I first arrived in Jordan, but with the help of surgery and physiotherapy I can move them both again,” says Deema. “But it’s hard for me to think of the future as long as there is war in Gaza.” 
 

The mental health impact for Gaza’s war-wounded

MSF mental health teams treating patients at the Amman hospital have noted that, before the start of the war, Palestinians from Gaza already suffered from depression and frustration, often related to unemployment, poverty and high addiction rates, as well as to disabilities and amputations caused by previous wars. However, since 7 October the mental health of Gazans has deteriorated dramatically.  
 
“A lot of patients coming from Gaza to the Amman hospital are experiencing not only post-traumatic stress disorder, but even acute-stress syndrome,” says Dr Ahmad Mahmoud Al Salem, MSF psychiatrist at the hospital in Amman. “This means that the patients usually have a lot of nightmares and a lot of flashbacks, as well as low mood, insomnia and avoidance of the whole memory.”
 
Many Palestinians in Gaza have witnessed the destruction of their homes and the killing of their families, and many have suffered life-changing injuries. On top of that, they are constantly learning of the loss of more family members and friends. 
 
“This is not a normal trauma,” says Dr Al Salem. “This is a huge, tormenting catastrophe, and psychologically their minds are unable to bear all of this stress.”