Fifty years ago, on one of the hilltops of the Holy City of Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives, a group of Palestinian benefactors, residents of Jerusalem, succeeded in preserving and safeguarding the hospital’s building structure – begun in 1964 by the Makassed Islamic Charitable Society − following raids by the Israeli occupation forces in the year 1967 and their attempts to take control of it.
On June 1, 1968, just one year after the Naksa, the society inaugurated Makassed Hospital, “Jerusalem’s Healing Kiss,” one of the largest and most important hospitals in the country. This 20-bed facility – which increased in capacity to 60 beds at the beginning of the 1970s – began to receive patients in order to meet the urgent health needs of Palestinian citizens.
The hospital is an affiliate of Makassed Islamic Charitable Society, which was founded in 1956 by a group of Jerusalemites. The society began its activities by setting up clinics that offered services at nominal fees and establishing vocational and scientific institutes and schools to help raise new generations of Palestinians, in addition to assisting the poor and needy.
Six medical dispensaries and clinics were established by Makassed Society: the Islamic dispensary set up in cooperation with the Islamic Waqf located at the old Shari’a Court in the Old City of Jerusalem, the Islamic clinic at Herod’s Gate, and the clinics of Al-Ram, Essawiyyeh, Sur Baher, and Abu Dis.
Half a century later, Makassed is now celebrating its golden jubilee, and it continues not only to bear witness to the depth of the Palestinians’ attachment to their Holy City and to their precious homeland of Palestine, but also to embody their civilized achievement. In the meantime, Makassed, the number one leading referral and teaching hospital in the nation, continues to instill hope in the hearts of its sons and daughters as it proceeds with its expansion, construction, and renovation. The result will be a 250-bed facility, with more than 80 beds dedicated to the intensive care unit to serve patients of all ages and across all medical specialties.

The Department of Internal Medicine comprises cardiology and diagnostic and therapeutic cardiac catheterization, pulmonary and respiratory diseases, endocrinology and diabetes, intensive care, nephrology, neurology, psychiatry, rheumatology, and gastroenterology, in addition to a gastrointestinal endoscopy unit.

• The Department of General Surgery consists of laparoscopic surgery, and anorectal surgery.
• The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology includes gynecological and oncological surgery, laparoscopic surgery, fetal medicine, assisted reproduction and infertility.
• The Department of Orthopedic Surgery includes joint replacement, arthroscopic surgery, bone oncology, and pediatric orthopedic surgery.
• The Department of Neurosurgery includes advanced neurological surgery for adults and children.
• The Departments of Adult and Pediatric Cardiac Surgery possess an ECMO Unit, allowing Makassed to distinguish itself among all other hospitals in the country.
• Specialized surgeries comprise vascular surgery, thoracic surgery, pediatric surgery, urological surgery, plastic surgery, and maxillofacial surgery.
• Pediatric medicine, with its various subspecialties, includes neonatology and neonatal ICU, a pediatric ICU, pediatric cardiology, endocrinology, neurology, genetic disorders, pulmonary diseases, digestive tract disorders, hematology and blood disorders, rheumatology, and metabolic disorders.
• The Department of Radiology comprises routine X-rays, MRI, CT, angiography and ultrasound scans, as well as interventional radiology.
• The Emergency Department provides services around the clock and is the main and largest center for emergency medicine in the Holy City of Jerusalem.
• The Anesthesia Department provides anesthesia services to the surgical teams during the performance of various complex surgeries for patients of all ages, as well as supervises the adult intensive care unit.
• The Pathology Department provides a wide variety of histopathological services, including routine, advanced, and immunological staining procedures.

Makassed’s supportive services and departments include:
outpatient clinics

• the Department of Social Services
• the Medical Library
• the Central Sterilization Unit
• the engineering departments, which include medical, structural, electrical, and mechanical engineering and their extensions
• the Projects and Fundraising Unit
• the Pharmacy
• the Department of Physiotherapy
• the Quality and Infection Control Department
• the general laboratories and blood bank
  medical nutrition
• the Continuing Education Department

Working in the various departments of Makassed Hospital is a distinguished elite of specialized physicians, resident doctors, nursing staff, and technical, administrative, and financial personnel from all over the nation who are highly qualified, trained, and experienced.

Makassed Hospital runs a number of specialized laboratories that include neurophysiology (with an EMU, EEG, NCV and EMG); cytogenetics and molecular genetics;  the Salwa Dajani Metabolic Laboratory; and a sleep laboratory that monitors brain and muscle functions.

The hospital was able to obtain JCI (Joint Commission International) accreditation for quality and patient safety twice in a row within three years, after undergoing the procedures of evaluating its medical and health services.

The hospital exhibits a number of scientific and educational dimensions that include the Residents’ Training and Specialization Program: Makassed Hospital is a university teaching hospital. It began to implement the specialized residency program for physicians 30 years ago, in 1988, and continues today. More than 300 specialist doctors have graduated from the hospital, most of whom are working throughout the country in the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem. The program currently trains about 100 resident physicians for a period of four to six years in the following departments: internal medicine, pediatrics, gynecology and obstetrics, general surgery, orthopedic surgery, anesthesiology, diagnostic radiology, neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery (for adults and children), and urology, in addition to subspecialties in neonatal medicine, rheumatology, and pulmonary disorders.
Furthermore, Makassed features clinical training for Palestinian medical school students from Al-Quds University. Indeed, Makassed Hospital is the main training center for students of the Faculty of Medicine at Al-Quds University. It is the university hospital affiliated to this college, and most of the hospital’s specialists are also professors in Al-Quds Faculty of Medicine.

In addition, there is the nursing college: Makassed Society founded the College of Nursing which is affiliated to the hospital. It has received full accreditation from the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education to become a university college that grants its graduates a bachelor of science degree in nursing following four years of studies.

Finally, Makassed also trains students in medical, nursing, technical, and supportive medical specialties from other universities and institutes all over the nation.

To contact Makassed Hospital, please visit our website at www.almakassed.org or send an email to info@almakassed.org. You can visit us on Facebook at Jerusalem Makassed Hospital Appeal
مستشفى المقاصد الخيرية الصفحة الرسمية.
The hospital’s telephone number is 02 627 0222;
the administration can be reached by phone at 02 627 0202
and by fax at 02 628 8392.
Makassed Society can be reached by telephone at 02 628 4746,
and by fax at 02 628 0853.
For contributions and support: Makassed Islamic Charitable Society Hospital, Bank of Palestine – Abu Dis Branch,
Account Number: 500008,
IBAN Number: Ps36 PALS 0470 0500 0080 0130 0000 0 ($),
United Palestinian Appeal, https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=12ffaf.