Children's Hospital Bethlehem
The Children's Hospital Bethlehem (English and locally called Caritas Baby Hospital ) was founded in 1952 by Salettiner Father Ernst Schnydrig MS . The Caritas Baby Hospital is located in Bethlehem ( Palestinian Territories ). It is the only hospital in the West Bank that specializes exclusively in pediatric medicine. All children up to the age of 14 are treated, regardless of their religion or social origin. The current hospital building was built and inaugurated in 1978.
The Caritas Baby Hospital is a non-governmental children's hospital run by an independent association, which is financed from marginal hospital fees and donations. It is the only children's hospital in Palestine with the active involvement of the mothers in the treatment of the children. The catchment area of the Caritas Baby Hospital is the southern West Bank, the area between Bethlehem and Hebron.
The children's hospital is sponsored by Children's Aid Bethlehem . Kinderhilfe Bethlehem is an international aid organization whose main task is the operation of the Caritas Baby Hospital. The donations are generated by the aid organization.
The Caritas Baby Hospital works on site independently of Caritas associations. The name "Caritas" goes back to the history of the establishment and the charitable orientation of the hospital.
Catchment area and common diseases
The Caritas Baby Hospital catchment area is the southern West Bank (the governorates of Bethlehem and Hebron). According to the Palestinian Statistics Bureau, an estimated 352,000 children under the age of 14 live there (as of 2016).
Under the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is suffering in the West Bank the economy . This makes it more difficult to build up a good health system. The gross domestic product in Palestine is one 20th that of Europe and the health system is in a precarious state. In Palestine there are only 1.26 hospital beds available for every 1000 inhabitants. 36.5 percent of the population are younger than 15 years. According to the Palestinian Statistics Bureau, the individual poverty rate in the West Bank is 13.9 percent - in the refugee camps throughout Palestine it is 45.5 percent (as of 2017). Children and toddlers in particular are affected by this misery and its effects (poverty, hunger, cold, poor hygienic conditions, poor water supply). The infant mortality rate is 4-5 times higher than in Europe.
Clinical pictures
The most common clinical pictures are: respiratory diseases , viral infections and lung diseases (especially in cold temperatures in winter), gastrointestinal diseases, congenital malformations and genetic (neurological or metabolic) diseases.
project
The initiator and founder of this hospital pursued the goal of ensuring basic care for all children who suffer from these precarious conditions. From this situation he wrote in the foundation stone document:
"We should" be a bridge of peace in the so much troubled Holy Land. A small bridge under the bridges of peace, which are still needed until the Holy Land can be a God-blessed and happy land for Jews, Christians and Muslims, for all children of Abraham. " We want to build a hospital "so that no child is denied medical help at the birthplace of Jesus."
Children's Hospital
history
In 1952, Father Ernst Schnydrig from Valais traveled to the Holy Land. On the way on behalf of the Swiss Caritas, he should get an idea of the situation on site. In Bethlehem he was confronted with the great hardship of the Palestinian refugees who were expelled after the war of independence and the Nakba.
He met Hedwig Vetter, an employee of the Swiss Caritas who looked after children in need on site. Together with the Palestinian doctor Antoine Dabdoub, they decided to offer medical care for sick children. They rented a few small rooms in the old town of Bethlehem and set up a makeshift emergency room.
Back in Europe, Father Schnydrig entered the service of the German Caritas Association and advocated financial support for this project in both Germany and Switzerland. In 1963 a sponsoring association was established for the hospital, whose current name is Kinderhilfe Bethlehem (formerly: "Association Caritas-Kinderhilfe Bethlehem"). On April 26, 1978, a separate hospital building for the Caritas Baby Hospital was inaugurated. Since then, the Caritas Baby Hospital has developed continuously from a medical and nursing point of view and is still an important point of contact for pediatric medicine in the West Bank.
In 2008 a further expansion and renovation was started. Instead of the previous 30,000 child treatments, the capacity should be expanded to 50,000. The inauguration of this further expansion on September 23, 2012 coincided with the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the hospital. With this expansion of the offer, the quality of medicine and care as well as the work with the patients' mothers could be improved. Through cooperation , it was possible to attract specialists who also hold special consultation hours in the children's hospital .
The chief physician of the children's hospital is Dr. Hiyam Marzouqa.
Medical offers
Outpatient Clinic
Most of the young patients in the Caritas Baby Hospital are treated on an outpatient basis. Parents come to the consultation with their sick children unannounced. The number of outpatient treatments has increased steadily since 2011. A special feature of the hospital are the child-friendly furnishing of the treatment rooms and the holistic treatment approach.
For some medical specialties, u. a. for pediatric neurology and pulmonology, special consultation hours are offered that take place regularly and always on the same day.
Stations
The Caritas Baby Hospital has 82 beds for the inpatient admission of children. These are spread over two general wards, a neonatology unit and an intensive care unit.
Neonatal ward / neonatology
A nursing ward for newborns has been set up since 2010. In the neonatal ward, premature and newborn babies with minor health problems are clinically examined. She is attached to a neonatal intensive care unit.
Intensive care unit
There has been a pediatric intensive care unit in the Caritas Baby Hospital since 2013. There are five beds available for premature babies and newborns up to three months of age (as of the end of 2018). In addition to the premature babies, seriously ill babies are also treated there. The most common cases are newborns or premature babies with transient tachypnea (excessive breathing rate), respiratory distress syndrome and meconium aspiration (penetration of meconium into the lungs).
Four beds in the intensive care unit are set up for children older than three months (as of the end of 2018). Here lie v. a. Children who suffer from muscle weakness, severe respiratory and metabolic diseases, acute kidney failure, heart problems and other chronic diseases. For patients in the intensive care unit, palliative medicine is also of great importance.
Difficult medical decisions are made by the Ethics Committee of the Caritas Baby Hospital.
Specializations: Neurology and Pneumology
In addition to general pediatrics, the Bethlehem Children's Hospital offers specializations for which there is particularly high demand in the region: intensive care medicine (see above) as well as pediatric neurology (diseases of the nervous system) and pediatric pulmonology (pulmonary medicine).
additional offers
laboratory
The Caritas Baby Hospital has its own laboratory, thanks to which many medical tests can be carried out internally. The laboratory is very committed to combating antibiotic resistance and has also carried out scientific studies in the past. For example, the effect of the Rota Virus was examined and based on the results, the Palestinian Ministry of Health decided to introduce compulsory vaccination against the Rota Virus.
Early childhood physiotherapy
The physiotherapy offer is aimed at toddlers up to the age of three and is part of the holistic treatment approach pursued by the Caritas Baby Hospital. The Caritas Baby Hospital distinguishes between four forms of therapy: classic physiotherapy, occupational therapy, pulmonary physiotherapy and speech therapy.
For infants, children and adolescents with disabilities, there is close cooperation with the rehabilitation network Lifegate (Gateway to Life) in Bait Jala .
Mothers department
Since the founding of the Caritas Baby Hospital, mothers have been closely involved in the treatment of sick children and nursing knowledge has been passed on to them. For the duration of the hospitalization of their children, the mothers can stay overnight in a hospital ward. Social workers advise the women there on medical, psychological and hygienic issues and organize discussion groups.
Social service
If the patient's family has any questions or difficulties, the social service is available. Not all families in the West Bank can afford hospital fees, although they are comparatively low or do not cover costs. In such cases, the social service clarifies the waiver of the hospital tax.
The Caritas Baby Hospital also offers outreach social work. Social workers visit the young patients and their families at home when necessary. Due to the restricted mobility in the southern West Bank, they save families the time-consuming and costly journey to the hospital.
Organization of self-help groups
For parents and family members of children with chronic diseases - e.g. B. Epidermolysis bullosa or cystic fibrosis - self-help groups are offered at the Caritas Baby Hospital. These are organized and looked after by the hospital's social services.
Clown group
Several employees of the Caritas Baby Hospital together form the "Band of Smile" (smile group). Disguised as clowns, they visit the hospitalized children and give them comfort. The conveyed well-being activates the children's self-healing powers .
day care center
At the end of 2011, the kindergarten was enlarged so that up to 28 children can be looked after by four trained people. Mainly children of hospital employees are accommodated. A further expansion is planned so that in the future working parents who do not work in the hospital can also accommodate their children here during the day.
In the annex building of the hospital there is a day care center for the children of the employees of the Caritas Baby Hospital. One of the hospital's principles is to offer employees good working conditions in a difficult environment and to encourage women, especially in management positions. For this reason, childcare is important.
Training / "Center for continuous education"
The advanced training center of the Caritas Baby Hospital regularly organizes internal advanced training and conferences for employees.
Former nursing school
A nursing school was operated from 1970 to the end of 2014. Palestinian students were trained in the profession of nursing . They could then be employed in the children's hospital or another hospital. Nurses were for training in emergency situations at the American University of Beirut sent.
Position in the Palestinian health system
The Caritas Baby Hospital is part of the local Palestinian health system and cooperates, where possible, with the Ministry of Health of the Palestinian Authority. Its offer is part of basic medical care and the hospital stands for competence in pediatric medicine. With around 250 full and part-time employees, the children's hospital is one of the most important employers in Bethlehem.
further activities
An exchange program for doctors and nurses exists with the Gaslini Hospital in Genoa , and the pediatric department of a clinic in Padua has sent staff to train in intensive child care . We also work closely with the Bikur Holim Hospital . With a video conference system, the employees of the children's hospital can exchange ideas with other specialists. The inventor of the hip joint - sonography in infants, Reinhard Graf, were pediatricians from the West Bank workshops for early detection and correction of hip dysplasia .
In emergencies, the children's hospital helps other Palestinian hospitals with z. B. Delivery of medicines and equipment or cooperates with refugee organizations.
Web links
- Children's Aid Bethlehem Switzerland (office in Lucerne)
- Children's Aid Bethlehem in the German Caritas Association (Freiburg i. B., Germany)
- Aiuto Bambini Betlemme Onlus (Bussolengo, Italy)
- Children's Aid Bethlehem Austria (Vienna)
- Caritas Baby Hospital Facebook page
- Website of the "Friends of Caritas Baby Hospital Bethlehem"
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Caritas Baby Hospital. Retrieved March 8, 2019 .
- ↑ Financing and certification. Retrieved March 8, 2019 .
- ↑ VIEW STORYTELLING: Caritas Children's Hospital in Bethlehem: The wall takes our hope away from us. Retrieved January 16, 2019 .
- ↑ PCBS. Retrieved January 16, 2019 .
- ↑ a b c PCBS, Palestine in Figures 2017. http://www.pcbs.gov.ps/Downloads/book2362.pdf Accessed January 16, 2019
- ↑ الجهاز المركزي للاحصاء الفلسطيني. Retrieved March 8, 2019 .
- ↑ 7,000 babies die shortly after birth every day. Retrieved March 12, 2019 .
- ↑ 100th birthday of Father Ernst Schnydrig Article on ebfr.de from September 25, 2012
- ↑ Von Zwei Zimmerchen zur Institution article on kath.ch from August 25, 2012
- ↑ a b Klaus Röllin: The heart must have hands . Ed .: Children's Aid Bethlehem. 1st edition. DZA Druckerei zu Altenburg GmbH, 2012, ISBN 978-3-936300-77-2 , p. 75, 25 .
- ↑ Near Jerusalem. Retrieved January 16, 2019 (Swiss Standard German).
- ↑ Caritas Baby Hospital- مستشفى كاريتاس للأطفال. Retrieved March 8, 2019 .
- ↑ Caritas Baby Hospital- مستشفى كاريتاس للأطفال. Retrieved January 16, 2019 .
- ↑ Caritas Baby Hospital with a stronger focus on specialization. Retrieved January 16, 2019 .
- ↑ Projects. Retrieved March 8, 2019 .
- ↑ Children's Hospital Bethlehem: A secure future for Shihab, ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
- ↑ More is necessary than just curing sick children. Retrieved January 16, 2019 .
- ↑ Unique opportunity for working mothers, ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved December 5, 2012.
- ↑ Education and health care at kinderhilfe-bethlehem.ch accessed on December 5, 2012 ( Memento from January 23, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Downloads - kinderhilfe-bethlehem.ch. Retrieved January 16, 2019 .
- ↑ Guerre sale against la santé. Retrieved March 8, 2019 .
Coordinates: 31 ° 43 ′ 13 ″ N , 35 ° 12 ′ 19 ″ E