One Year Post-Ceasefire, Gaza's Healthcare System Faces Ongoing Collapse and Severe Shortages

When the “ceasefire” was declared on October 10 last year, health workers understood the immense task of repair ahead. There was initial hope for breathing space, regular deliveries of medicines and equipment, restoration of hospitals and clinics, and permission for patients to leave Gaza for treatment. Hopes also included overseas emergency medical teams arriving to support exhausted staff and planning for long-term care. However, none of these expectations materialized.

Three years into the genocide, relief remains absent. The devastated health system struggles to sustain operations while regular shipments of medical supplies and equipment face continued restrictions, and medical evacuations remain stalled. Ongoing bombardment by Israel means patients continue arriving at clinics with traumatic injuries, pushing the death toll past 1,470 since the “ceasefire” began. Simply reaching a health centre now endangers patients. Deteriorating security has forced the suspension of services supported by Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) in certain areas of Gaza. Last month, Israeli military quadcopter fire killed a 65-year-old patient seeking treatment at a MAP-supported health centre in Jabalia.

Alongside treating fresh injuries, medical staff attempt to care for patients requiring months or years of ongoing therapy. Survivors of lost limbs need rehabilitation, prosthetics, and additional surgeries, but Israeli authorities heavily restrict necessary supplies. Children who survived acute malnutrition now experience anaemia and stunting, while individuals managing diabetes and high blood pressure struggle to acquire medication. Furthermore, cancer patients lack access to radiotherapy, and people with kidney failure cannot rely on regular dialysis.

Last month, a staff member at MAP in Gaza experienced a personal loss when her aunt, Iktimal, passed away. After sensing symptoms in February, Iktimal received a biopsy, but local laboratories lacked the supplies to test the sample promptly. It took over a month to diagnose cervical cancer, a condition typically curable when detected early. Following surgery in April, her slow recovery led to kidney complications requiring specialist care unavailable locally. Although her family applied for a medical evacuation through a slow and bureaucratic process, Israeli authorities approved it only when her condition became critical. She died in Egypt two weeks after traveling there for care.

Iktimal’s situation is widespread. Data from the World Health Organization indicates that more than 15,000 people in Gaza await medical evacuation, facing potential preventable deaths if delays persist. A similar tragedy occurred a month ago at Assahaba Medical Complex, a hospital supported by MAP, where a newborn with a severe heart condition died because emergency surgery was unavailable in Gaza.

Basic medical supplies are frequently short, including IV fluids, anaesthetics, surgical materials, and oxygen. Staff in many hospitals must manually transport cylinders to a central station for refilling. More than 500 patients across Gaza depend entirely on oxygen, including individuals with cancer, pulmonary fibrosis, and heart conditions, alongside babies and children in intensive care units. In August, the Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that 22 out of 34 oxygen stations had ceased operations, leaving only four of 30 cylinder-filling machines functional, with remaining stations at risk of failure.

Israeli authorities continue blocking spare parts required for repairs, designating them as “dual-use” items. Consequently, Gaza operates without a working MRI machine, and merely one or two CT scanners serve a population of approximately two million. Physicians must frequently make clinical decisions without standard scans, tests, or medicines, allowing treatable cancers to advance, healable injuries to become permanent disabilities, and chronic malnutrition to cause lifelong developmental difficulties.

The anticipated healing and rebuilding period promised by the “ceasefire” never materialized. The systemic restrictions that delayed Iktimal’s diagnosis, treatment, and evacuation remain active, mirroring thousands of other cases over the past year. Every administrative delay, withheld medication, denied scan, and refused exit pushes patients past treatable limits, leaving countless individuals in Gaza running out of time.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.