Al-Shifa, Al-Aqsa, and Al-Rantisi are among Gaza's longest-standing and most central hospitals. Since 2024, they have provided critical care to over 1 million patients and remain absolutely essential to the survival of Gaza's healthcare system.

After Gaza’s healthcare system collapsed, UOSSM Canada assumed operations of these three hospitals through 2025 and 2026. However, renewed crackdowns on humanitarian organizations in the Strip have cut off key funding channels previously sustaining their operations. As a result, all three hospitals are facing severe funding crises threatening to close their doors for good this August.

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1. Al-Rantisi Specialized Children’s Hospital (North Gaza)

This is the last remaining specialized pediatric center in the northern governorates, caring for children from infancy up to age 18. It features the region's only specialized neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

• The Impact: In a single month alone, Al-Rantisi treats over 1,300 children in outpatient care, admits nearly 500 critical inpatient cases, and runs over 11,000 vital diagnostic lab tests. It also houses a Nutrition Stabilization Center to treat children suffering from severe acute malnutrition.

2. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital (Middle Governorates)

Al-Aqsa is the sole functioning public hospital serving a catchment population of approximately 400,000 people in central Gaza. UOSSM Canada sustains ten specialized departments here, including advanced neurosurgery, cardiology, and plastic surgery.

• The Impact: It serves as the primary referral site for advanced trauma care and complex reconstructive surgeries, conducting tens of thousands of diagnostic procedures to save lives daily.

3. Al-Shifa Medical Complex (Gaza City)

Historically the dominant medical center in the region, Al-Shifa has been adapted into a critical emergency care hub. It absorbed the medical teams and equipment from the compromised Indonesian Hospital, preserving vital 24/7 ICU operations.

• The Impact: Al-Shifa houses the Medical Laboratory, which acts as the diagnostic backbone for more than two million people. Without it, clinicians across the region cannot cross-match blood for transfusions or identify post-operative infections.

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What Happens Next?

Simply put, these hospitals are not at risk because they lack doctors, patients, or the ability to provide care. The only difference between their ability to remain open and shutting down this August is funding. This is an entirely preventable crisis.

Their future now lies fully in the hands of those who choose to stand behind them. We cannot let these doors close. Lives depend on our immediate intervention.

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