© Ron Haviv/VII

As 2010 comes to an end and MSF approaches its 40th year, it is clear that changing environments demand constant innovation, so that MSF can respond to the health needs of more people, more effectively. Thanks to our supporters and our dedicated staff, we are able to remain committed to assisting people in need of emergency humanitarian medical care.

© William Daniels / Panos pictures

Since it was first created by a small group of doctors and journalists in France in 1971, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has always striven to find better ways of saving the lives and improving the health of more people through emergency medical action. This persistent search for innovation in public health emergencies is rarely highlighted, but has been crucial in how MSF delivers humanitarian medical assistance today.

© H. de Ribaucourt/MSF

“What we witness every day inside the detention facilities is not easy to describe”, said Ioanna Pertsinidou, Médecins Sans Frontières’ emergency coordinator, in December.

© Bruno De Cock

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams have participated in the launch in Africa of two eagerly awaited vaccines – one against a deadly strain of meningitis and the other against pneumococcal disease.

© Spencer Platt/Getty Images

On 12 January 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince, and surrounding areas. As many as 220,000 people are estimated to have died, and more than 300,000 were injured. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) mounted its largest ever single emergency response.

© Bruno De Cock