Doctors and medical professionals in San Francisco are adding their voices to the rising calls for an immediate ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
Citing the damage already inflicted by Israel on the health-care infrastructure in Gaza, staff of the UCSF Medical Center are calling for an end to the violence, and for the safe passage of medical resources and humanitarian aid to enter the region.
Dr. Jess Ghannam, a clinical professor of Psychiatry and Global Health Sciences in the School of Medicine at UCSF said, "Physicians and health-care providers are unable to give care. Basic medical supplies are not getting in.”
Dr. Leigh Kimberg added that the lack of supplies is certain to lead to increased rates of infection and disease, such as cholera.
Dr. Kimberg praised the Palestinian health care workers, who have refused to abandon their patients. She added that the UCSF staff has fielded questions from medical professionals in Gaza such as “How do you treat severe dehydration without water?”
Speaking to the gravity of the moment, Dr. Rupa Marya, co-founder of the Do No Harm coalition, said “Silence now is an unacceptable complicity. Our physician, nursing, and healthcare colleagues in Gaza are under direct attack, and they are calling for our help.”
Palestinian medical authorities say more than 8,000 people, including about 3,500 children, have been killed in Gaza since October 7.