Photo by Click at Morguefile.com Dear Friends,
We’re all familiar with the scenario of calling to make an appointment with a specialist at a clinic or hospital, only to discover that the next available appointment is in several months time. In the central region of Israel, you may have a chance of getting an appointment within a reasonable time – however if you live in the periphery, you are in a much worse position. In the north and south of Israel, there are significantly fewer specialists, nurses and hospital beds and waiting times for treatments and operations are 10% longer than in the center.
In the north and south, the average life expectancy is lower than in the center. In the north there are more patients with diabetes and higher cancer rates. The Arab society and Ethiopian population in these areas are in a particularly bad situation and the health of the Bedouin population in the Negev is among the worst in Israel. This isn’t an academic issue, or simply a matter of data in excel tables – it is a matter of life and death.
The Ministry of Health revealed these serious gaps in a report published last year. The Afek and Grotto Committees examined health services in the north and south and submitted recommendations to reduce these gaps. So we have reports, and we have recommendations – but we do not have a budget.
Prior to the discussions on the 2017-2018 budget, ACRI together with organizations from the Northern Health Forum petitioned the government to demand that a series of measures be taken to close these gaps, including: To fund the recommendations of the Committees, to compare the standards in the center and periphery regions with regards to personnel and the number of hospital beds, to develop a broad and comprehensive program to improve the health of the Arab population, and more. We emphasized that if these issues are not addressed in the next budget, then reform will be delayed for a long time. However once again the government missed an opportunity and did not provide for the necessary steps in the budget.
We will not give up! ACRI will continue to fight for the right of all people to receive high quality and accessible health services within a reasonable time – because human life is equally valuable in the periphery.
Yours,
Sharon
Sharon Abraham-Weiss
Executive Director
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel
Members of the Northern Health Forum: The Galilee Society – The Arab National Society for Health, Research and Services | ACRI | The Civil Forum for Health Advancement in the Galilee | Tene Briut | Health Forum of the South | Physicians for Human Rights | Shatil, New Israel Fund
