A Structural Approach to Palestinian Health

The destruction and de-development of the Palestinian health system in the occupied territory, and the inequitable health outcomes of Palestinian citizens of Israel and refugees just beyond its borders, are often theorized as the results of a longstanding conflict. But these health realities are instead best conceptualized as part of a broader effort toward Palestinian dispossession, one in which the United States is an active participant. In the last few years, leading Israeli and international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and B’Tselem, have joined numerous Palestinian voices in declaring that the system of control that dominates Palestinian lives amounts to apartheid. Just as the WHO declared in 1981 that an apartheid system was inconsistent with the right to health, this session will explore how the structures that delimit Palestinian lives generate corrosive health determinants through direct and structural violence, including movement limitations, a healthcare permit regime, inadequate funding and resources, and humanitarian aid dependence, among others. We will also discuss an example of a community-based movement for health improvement and agency in West Bank refugee camps, as well as highlight key steps toward sustainable remediation of Palestinian health determinants. 

Date and Time: Wednesday, April 12, 2023 at 12:00pm – 1:00pm ET

Location: Zoom or in person (food will be provided)

Speakers:

Yara Asi, PhD

Dr. Yara M. Asi is an Assistant Professor at the University of Central Florida in the School of Global Health Management and Informatics. Her research agenda focuses on global health, human rights, and development in fragile populations. She is a Non-resident Fellow at the Arab Center Washington DC, a 2020-2021 Fulbright US Scholar to the West Bank, the Fall 2021 US Fellow at Al Shabaka Palestinian Policy Network, and the co-chair of the Palestine Health Justice Working Group in the American Public Health Association.

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David Mills, MD

Dr. David Mills is a pediatric emergency medicine physician and fellow in global health at Boston Children’s Hospital and an Instructor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School.  He is an affiliate in the Religion, Conflict, and Peace Initiative at the Harvard Divinity School and a member of the Children in Crisis working group at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative.

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Bram Wispelwey, MD, MPH

Dr. Bram Wispelwey is a co-founder of Health for Palestine, a community organizing initiative in Palestinian refugee camps that seeks to maximize wellness and address health barriers via social accompaniment and creative integration with existing facilities. He is an Associate Physician in the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and he also teaches at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

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