In Israel there are currently some 25,000 refugees and asylum seekers. Most of them came from Africa - primarily from Eritrea and Sudan. Among the refugees and asylum seekers living in Israel, nearly 2,000 are minors. Two thirds of these refugees live in squalor in Tel Aviv and are not eligible to receive health services, as they are not citizens or residents of Israel.
The IMA has taken steps to enable the refugees to receive adequate medical treatment. Besides the organization’s initiative in the Knesset to amend the National Health Insurance Law to include refugees and asylum seekers, the IMA has established, together with the Ministry of Health, a clinic that provides primary health care to these refugees. In addition, the IMA has initiated a major drive to secure medication free of charge and has, in fact, received donations from major pharmaceutical companies.
In September 2008, the IMA and the Ministry of Health opened the clinic for refugees. The clinic provides basic services for those in need, who come from all over the country. In July 2009, the collaboration was expanded and Magen David Adom (MDA) joined the project.
In the last four years the clinic has been running and continuing to expand its services. Above all, the improvements of the services provided at the clinic, were made possible thanks to the volunteer doctors who dedicate themselves to this important project. The clinic is completely dependent on the activities of these doctors who give it their time, their energy and their expertise. The clinic is also supported by the voluntary work of teams of nurses, pharmacists, paramedics and interpreters.
In 2011 many changes were made to the clinic, and thanks to our volunteer physicians, it has established its position as a major player, recognized and respected in the complex field of medical treatment for refugees and asylum seekers. Clinic activity is, almost entirely, based on the volunteers, the spirit of doctors from across the country, attending the clinic every day.
We appeal to you to join our team of doctors and medical workers who staff the clinic regularly and help us and them, maintain and sustain the existing clinic. In addition, we are missing volunteer physicians from family medicine and gynecology.
For enquiries about volunteering, please email: ravid@ima.org.il
Summary of the development of the clinic:
1. More doctors joined the rotation of volunteers at the clinic.
2. In addition to the regular, every day, between 16:00 to 20:00, the clinic operates on Mondays and Wednesday 13:00-16:00. In these hours, blood sugar, blood pressure and pregnancy tests are conducted. As well as dressings and treatment of injuries are given. Prescription medication is also supplied.
3. Working alongside doctors, to supplement and support their work, other professionals were recruited: nurses, paramedics, interpreters and volunteers who staff the reception position.
4. Once a week, while the doctor is on duty they are joined by specialists in gynecology, psychology, pediatrics, physical therapy, diabetes nurse, a clinical dietitian, dermatologist, dealing with patients according to their specialization.
5. The Volunteer paramedic helps the doctors on a regular basis, and prepares the next patient for examination.
6. The clinic works in conjunction with a number of outpatient clinics (optometrists, gastroenteritis, orthopedists, neurologists, ENT clinics, Ichilov dermatological clinic and Levinsky sex clinic) that our patients receive treatment according to their requirements free of cost.
7. Patients also come from clinics in remote areas and within the area of service improvement there are also family doctors in the cities of Eilat, Arad, Beersheba, Ashkelon, Metula and Kiryat Simona where patients receive treatment according to their need.
8. Blood tests are sent to the laboratory at the Wolfson Medical Center.
9. The Clinic improved reception conditions - additional sinks were installed, and doubled the lighting in the clinic.
The patients and the clinic's work scope:
¨ Most patients from Sudan and Eritrea, and others from various countries in Africa such as Chad, Nigeria, and the Ivory Coast.
¨ Today the clinic has 5,500 patients who regularly attend.
¨ Every day the clinic received between 10-13 new patients.
¨ The refugee clinic reflects a mixture of third-world and developed world levels co-morbidities.
¨ According to the clinic once a week the clinic receives a case of human trafficking, slavery and abuse.
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