Each summer, Italy receives thousands of migrants arriving in boats from Africa. Lampedusa, a small island south of Sicily, is a landing spot for more than 18,000 immigrants per year. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) provides medical care at the port where boats land after hazardous trips across the Mediterranean Sea. In recent weeks, a series of rather dramatic landings have been recorded in the Canal of Sicily, with people arriving in a very bad state.
Luciano Grisio, a doctor with MSF, describes what he sees during his work on the island. Project Update - 12 Jul 2007

Thailand

Hmong refugees in Thailand are a population in danger

Project Update - 10 Jul 2007

Democratic Republic of Congo

Emergencies in the 'Town of Stones'

During the last days of 2006, the Katanga Province region was affected by terrible floods. We estimate that a total of 32,000 people were affected by the floods - which amounts to half the population of Bukama."
Celine Zegers, MSF nurse and Head of the Emergency Operations in Bukama, has just spent six weeks in Bukama. She describes the difficult survival conditions for the homeless population, but also the positive impact of her team. Project Update - 3 Jul 2007

Central African Republic

'People are trapped in the middle of the conflict'

Since mid-2006 violence has dramatically increased in scale and intensity in the northern parts of Central African Republic - with grave consequences for the civilians who are caught in the crossfire of a number of armed groups.
More recently, the north-eastern province of Vakaga has also become caught up in violence. MSF was the first international aid group to be active in this very remote region bordering Chad and Sudan (Darfur). An interview with MSF's outgoing Head of Mission, Heinz Henghuber. Project Update - 2 Jun 2007

Malawi

Malawi's Emergency Human Resources Plan: a ray of hope?

"There are so many patients here to see. The number is about 75 to 100 patients per day. Sometimes people wait for hours to be attended to. Yesterday I was alone on duty without even any medical assistant to help me. Sometimes I have to do both day and night shifts in the same day! We need at least five more nurses here."
- Loveness Makeyi, 35, Nurse/Midwife, Khonjeni Clinic, Malawi Project Update - 24 May 2007

Global

Coping with health worker shortages: lessons and limits

"In Lesotho there are only 89 of us doctors in the entire country. The whole process of decentralisation of HIV care - taking it down to the people in the clinics - depends on nurses. Many lives have been saved because ARV treatment is in the clinics and nurses are taking over most of the responsibilities."
- Dr Pheello Lethola, Field Doctor, MSF Lesotho Project Update - 24 May 2007

South Africa

Retaining health workers: the basics

"I make 3,000,000 Méticais ($US 115) a month. With this, I can buy one bag of rice, one bottle of oil, and pay the energy at home. I'm borrowing money from my neighbours because I cannot afford to send my children to school."
- Maria, 44, Paediatric Nurse, Tete Health Center No.2, Mozambique Project Update - 24 May 2007

Palestine

MSF reacts to charges issued against Palestinian staff member

Mr. Mossaab Bashir, a member of the staff of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in the Gaza Strip, was charged by an Israeli court with "contact with a foreign agent" and "conspiracy to commit a crime". Project Update - 17 May 2007

Nigeria

Providing emergency medical care to victims of violence in the Niger Delta

As in other countries, massive wealth derived from abundant natural resources Ã¢â‚¬" oil, in Nigeria's case Ã¢â‚¬" contrasts with widespread poverty and inadequate medical services. Project Update - 11 May 2007

Brazil

AIDS DRUGS: Brazil, Thailand override big pharma patents

Although a handful of countries have issued compulsory licenses for AIDS drugs without kicking up much of a fuss, all involved older, first-generation drugs. Now the second-line treatments are at stake. Economist Love adds that big pharma feels threatened that this movement could go beyond AIDS to heart disease and other ailments. "There's a big push in Thailand to do it for everything," says Love. Project Update - 11 May 2007

Four mothers posing in a corridor of the Hospital in Bili. All four of them are staying in the hospital with their child, that's suffering from a severe case of malaria. Since the beginning of the project in 2016, the pediatric ward already treated more than 4.000 cases of complicated/severe form of malaria.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

Independent medical humanitarian assistance

We provide medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare. Our teams are made up of tens of thousands of health professionals, logistic and administrative staff - most of them hired locally. Our actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of independence and impartiality. We are a non-profit, self-governed, member-based organisation.

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Lampedusa shipwrecks - and the number of victims continues to increase