Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders conducted a 3 year study among Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza.
Although the focus of the study was to measure how effective counselling could be for those suffering psychological trauma, the report also highlights that severe psychological distress is widespread:
Among 1,254 patients, 23.2% reported post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD], 17.3% anxiety disorder (other than PTSD or acute stress disorder), and 15.3% depression. PTSD was more frequently identified in children ≤ 15 years old, while depression was the main symptom observed in adults.
The cause of the problem?
The three major traumatic events reported by patients were witnessing a murder or physical abuse (53.4%), property destruction or loss (32.7%), and killing of a close family member (31.5%)
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![[QODLink]](http://english.aljazeera.net/mritems/Images/2012/2/11/2012211114212966734_16.jpg "Yusuf Raza Gilani")
