Ref: 31/2019

On Thursday, 27 June 2019, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) concluded the second training course within the series of courses relevant to human rights and the mechanisms to promote the right to health.  Twenty-three participants from healthcare service providers in the Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS) in the Gaza Strip. The 20-hour training course was held in the training hall of al-Deira Hotel in Gaza City from 24-27 June 2019.

The training course is part of a project to promote, respect, and fulfill the right to the highest attainable standard of health in the Gaza Strip.  The 3-year project is funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by PCHR in partnership with the PMRS.  The project aims to improve access to healthcare service, legal counseling and legal assistance for a number of Palestinian patients; to mainstream the culture of international human rights and humanitarian law, particularly the right to health, by building the capacities of national and international NGOs working in the health sector; and to promote improved monitoring, documenting and reporting of violations of the right to health.  It should be noted that 8 training courses will be held during this year targeting 200 members of the medical personnel and activists in the Gaza Strip.

It should be noted that these training courses are also part of PCHR’s long-term efforts to develop and mainstream the culture of human rights and concepts of the right to health among those working in the health sector, particularly the primary healthcare providers.

The training course program addressed several topics that meet the needs of the targeted group relevant to human rights as it includes the following: the International Bill of Human Rights and its 3 components; right to health in the international human rights law and international humanitarian law; Palestine’s obligations to realize the right to health; tort liability resulting from medical errors and medical negligence and its impact on the right to health; women’s and children’s rights from the perspective of the right to health; World Health Organization (WHO) and its role in promoting the right to health; Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; the mechanisms to promote the freedom of movement and right to health (PCHR as an example); and the procedures for monitoring and documenting violations of the right to health and the legal follow-up mechanism.

Furthermore, the participants emphasized the importance of this training program in the capacity building of those working in the NGOs, particularly the primary healthcare organizations, to improve the access to the healthcare services and promote society’s access to healthcare in addition to raising their public awareness of the concepts relevant to the right to health.