Support to PMRS 2016-2021

PMRS SRHR clinics tended to a total of 28 030 female beneficiaries with a 13% increase from 2020. PMRS trained staff on GBV and MISP (Minimal Implemented Service Package for SRHR) and MHPSS including referral pathways and mechanisms. A total of 91 healthcare workers were trained. PMRS endeavored to reach out more women and men including PwDs and especially women with disabilities to have access to SRHR and MHPPS services via comprehensive PHC model. A total of 5 644 women (174 WWD) and 1 679 Males (115 with disability) have benefited from SRHR services including health integration, family planning, GBV detection and referrals, and medications. PHC centers have been supported with the needed SRH equipment and materials to increase access to SRHR services among vulnerable women, men, girls, and boys. As an example, based on PMRSs experience through primary health care provision, either through mobile clinics or PHC centers, and its programs focusing on sexual health and sexual relationships, PMRS have garnered qualitative data from many women who expressed problems and issues related to lack of lubrication during intercourse, and the need of lubricant. Whilst lubricants were not always available as part of our standard primary healthcare package, PMRS supported seven centers with a total of 1000 tubes of female lubricant gel that can help all women in need. Women who were transitioning through menopause, or those with a history of hysterectomy, premature ovarian failure, and newly married women were those that presented the most in need. PMRS has supported Al Azhar University Youth Friendly Health Center in Gaza with the needed medical equipment, supplies, and medications to provide students with PHC and SRHR care. PMRS has established a midwifery led team to provide health based counselling and psychosocial support to women and girls on SRHR. A total of 3 749 youth benefitted from increased access to SRHR via Youth Friendly Health Services approach. 2 564 females and 1 185 males. 57 of these beneficiaries were youth with disabilities. Efforts and initiatives made to increase male participation in SRHR subjects, PMRS has worked intensively with couples to offer pre-marital counselling. This has been done through the coordination and cooperation with Sharia Court. PMRS continued its efforts to advocate for SRHR in Palestine through continuing the dialogue with the Ministry of Health and relevant stakeholders. Pushing the agenda of SRH in strategic planning of the Ministry and calling for the endorsement of the Family Protection Bill.

PMRS' results framework 2013-2020 feeds into the National Health Strategy Goal: “State-building and health system and services strengthening to realize an effectively functioning health sector that facilitates implementation and the achievement of planned results in Palestine” National Health Objectives are: 1. Strengthen the governance and institutional development of the Ministry of Health (MoH). 2. Strengthen human resources in the health sector through improving the planning, management, training, education and financing of human resources. Facilitating a multi-professional contribution to better health and management in collaboration with other ministries, academia and other relevant stakeholders. 3. Promote healthy behaviors and improve disease prevention as upstream policy and practice in the Palestinian health system through advocacy, raising public awareness to change behavioral practices 4. Assure the rights of all citizens to access quality sustainable primary, secondary and tertiary health services, in particular primary health care, for the poor, vulnerable, and unemployed, as well as those displaced and/or living in hard to reach areas. 5. Maintain and strengthen public-private partnerships especially between MoH, UNRWA, NGOs and the private-for-profit sector to facilitate harmonization, coordination, and comprehensiveness of efforts. 6. Develop the role of the Ministry of Health in cross-sectoral work with other ministries and national institutions. . PMRS’s activity actively participates in each of the national health objectives, as PMRS has been developing health models and transferring them to other stakeholders including the MoH for years, and will continue to do so for the coming period. An example of transferred model is the Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) one, developed by PMRS and ultimately adopted by the MoH. PMRS has been participating in joint training sessions with the MoH, in particular in the fields of Women’s Health and Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR). PMRS organizes public awareness sessions and regularly coordinates with the MoH about health messages and with the Ministry of Education (MoE) for the dissemination of health messages in schools. Moreover, PMRS was a pioneer in the development of a model on NCDs focusing on early detection and disease management and transferred it to the MoH. It is PMRS’s mission statement to contribute to guaranteeing access to primary health care for all Palestinians, especially the poor, the vulnerable and the marginalized. PMRS aims at complementing the government services in areas in which the Palestinian Authority (PA) is active and to continue and develop the provision of basic health care in Area C that falls out of the PA control and in Gaza where the blockade is affecting the capacity of the government to deliver proper quality services. East Jerusalem is also targeted by PMRS in terms of advocacy and raising awareness regarding health rights.  PMRS does contribute to the National Goal of strengthening the health system and the health sector in Palestine. PMRS' results framework 2013-2020 includes three goals with several outcomes and outputs per each goal. Sweden's assessment is that there are too many outcomes and outputs and many of these outcomes/outputs are general and ambitious. PMRS has developed a new strategy 2020-2015 which is more focused and realistic and aims at increasing the community approach in prompting health rights specifically Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR).