Hope in the Rubble: GlocalShift Sponsors Gaza's First White Coat Ceremony Since the War

A Tradition Reclaimed

The White Coat Ceremony is one of the most meaningful traditions at the University College of Applied Sciences (UCAS). It marks the transition from classroom learning to clinical practice — the moment students formally commit, in front of their peers, mentors, and families, to a life in service of others.

This year's ceremony took place on the very grounds where the college once stood before it was largely destroyed. The setting was deliberate. UCAS President Dr. Mohammed Mushtaha said it plainly:

"We celebrate today's White Coat on land the occupation tried to turn to rubble. We are telling the world: knowledge cannot be bombed. The mission cannot be defeated. Gaza will continue to graduate angels of mercy, generation after generation."

Why GlocalShift Was There

Our work in Gaza has always been rooted in a simple belief: investing in people is investing in recovery. Throughout the war, GlocalShift worked alongside local partners and health authorities to keep essential medical services running — supplying medical equipment, medicines, protective gear, and critical supplies to healthcare facilities across the strip.

Supporting this ceremony was a natural extension of that commitment. Education and healthcare are inseparable, and the nursing students who took their oath that day are exactly who Gaza's health system needs most right now.

Ghedir Shahada, GlocalShift's Gaza Office Director, addressed the students at the event:

"We are proud of our partnership with UCAS. We believe that investing in education and healthcare professionals is an investment in Palestinian society's ability to recover and rebuild — especially in this phase, which demands we strengthen the resilience of educational institutions and the health sector."

What the Moment Meant

The ceremony brought together UCAS leadership, deans, and students alongside senior figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health — including the Director General of Nursing, Dr. Khalil Shaqfa, and the Director General of Administrative Affairs, Mahmoud Hammad.

Dr. Ali Al-Khatib, Dean of Nursing and Health Sciences, spoke to what the occasion represented beyond the ritual:

"This is not a ceremonial rite alone. It is an ethical, professional, and human commitment — a pledge students make to serve people, protect their dignity, uphold confidentiality, and hold to the ethics of the profession whatever the circumstances."

Watching students take that pledge on the ruins of the building where they had studied was, by any measure, an extraordinary act of defiance — and of hope.

Building the Future, Now

UCAS has long been a primary supplier of qualified nursing and allied health graduates to Gaza's hospitals and health centres. The students who took the oath this day are stepping into a health system under extraordinary pressure, where skilled, committed professionals are needed more urgently than ever.

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