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6.4 Rehabilitation facilities in Gaza6.4.1 Assessment of needsAs stated above, the FFM teams were informed that of the more than 11,000people injured, about 3,000 had been admitted to a hospital for complex surgicalprocedures, and just over 500 had been referred to receive medical care outsideGaza. 149 It is unclear, however, how many of those injured during this war willrequire rehabilitation and/or suffer long term disabilities necessitating therapy andaccommodations. The FFM’s assessments indicate that many of the hospitalizedpatients experienced amputations and compound limb fractures, which will requireprostheses and intense rehabilitation to recover function. Many patients are likely tosuffer permanent disabilities.The FFM teams heard conflicting estimates in this regard, ranging from 75 to 1,000people, and believe that authoritative information regarding numbers of individualsor distribution according to age does not exist, primarily because of the poordocumentation and limited access to injured people in the community at this stage.Efforts are being made by hospitals to retrospectively assess the number ofamputations and other surgeries done during the war; but at present, no statisticsabout surgical activities, including amputations, during the full duration of the war areavailable. The absence of such data makes it difficult to undertake adequate planning.Irrespective of the exact figures, it is clear that rehabilitation, both physical andpsychological, will be crucial as individuals and communities struggle to recover theirlives and livelihoods; and, a marked increase in the need for specialized rehabilitationservices is anticipated. It is important to note, as mentioned previously, 150 that theonly public rehabilitation hospital in Gaza, Al Wafa, was completely destroyed earlyon in the war. In addition, a 12 July 2014 airstrike damaged the Mabarrat FilistineAssociation, a residential rehabilitation facility for the disabled in Beit Lahiya innorthern Gaza. Two disabled women were killed in the attack and four people wereinjured. 151 the current status of this facility is unknown.An additional related issue, described by one doctor in a referral hospital, is thathospitals are seeing the long-term effects of hospitalization in patients, including‘narcotics addiction’ due to prolonged opiate treatment for pain. 152149See above, Chapters 1 and 4.150See No 3.2 above.151Interview with Mustafa Abed of the Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS) on 11 Nov 2014 by AV. See also UNRWAsituation report from 13 Jul 2014 at http://www.unrwa.org/newsroom/emergency-reports/gaza-situation-report-5 ,accessed 23 Nov 2014.152Dr. Maher Al Deeb, Director of St Joseph Hospital East Jerusalem, interviewed on 22 Aug 2014 by the first FFM team.73