Palestine: the assault on health and other war crimes: Personal view from Israel

doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7474.1102-b

BMJ 2004;329:1102 (6 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7474.1102-b

Letter

Palestine: the assault on health and other war crimes

Personal view from Israel

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—As a doctor who has worked in Israel for 10 years,I am astounded that such one sided political views as thoseof Summerfield could be printed in such a distinguished medicaljournal.¹ I have spent the past five years working in Ramla—amixed Arab and Jewish town with a patient list of over 30% Arabs.I have never heard a single complaint from any of my patientsthat they have been discriminated against in any way by theIsraeli medical system because of their colour, religion, orbackground.

Previously while working in hospitals in Jerusalem, I saw howArab and Jew are treated side by side, with first class medicalservices, and no distinctions made between them. Routinely patientsfrom the PA that needed more advanced care than the PalestinianAuthority hospitals could give were transferred and treatedin Israeli hospitals.

Until I read of the Israeli . . . [Full text of this article]

Alexander J Lustman, family practitioner

Ben Gurion Health Clinic, Ramla, Israel lustmana@bezeqint.net