Sam Ajluni chose to do his international residency in Ramallah, the hometown of his parents and family. A decade ago, it was common to see Ramallah's emergency room filled with war victims or people wounded by stray bullets. Today, the patient cases are more common, but the administrative system is chaotic at best. Right now, it's mostly government employees who have health insurance, but only government hospitals accept it anyway. The private medical facilities are often run by churches and they don't even deal with insurance.
All expenses are out of pocket.
Until the ministry of health forms a comprehensive plan, hospital administrators are simply trying to provide treatment in an efficient and timely manner. They have accomplished that goal pretty well, according to Ajluni who said most emergency-room patients in Ramallah see a doctor within 20 minutes. In addition, most are treated and released within an hour. Because of the high demand and limited resources, they are forced to work efficiently. They do whatever it takes to deliver immediate care.