BMJ  2006;332 (13 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7550.0-d

Delayed hospital access in the West Bank may worsen medical conditions

Patients whose transportation to emergency departments was delayed because of checkpoints or detours during the armed conflict in the Palestinian West Bank had a higher hospital admission rate than those who were not delayed. Heilskov Rytter and colleagues collected data for all 2228 patients who presented to the emergency departments of three West Bank hospitals during one week (p 1122). Of the 18% of patients who were delayed because of the occupation, 32% were admitted to hospital—compared with only 13% of those who were not delayed, suggesting that restriction in hospital access may influence the severity of the medical conditions presented.

Credit: MENAHEM KAHANA/GETTY

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incomplete methodology

leonard thaler
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Political meddling

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