“I feel like I have been given a second life by the doctors and nurses here.”

Since March 2016, thousands of acute watery diarrhoea cases have been detected and treated in Ethiopia with the full support of the Regional Health Bureau. Project Update - 10 Mar 2017

International Women's Day

Safe delivery care in Afghanistan

On International Women’s Day 2017, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) celebrates the women of Afghanistan, and highlights the dangers they face during pregnancy and childbirth. Project Update - 1 Mar 2017

Sally Parker, MSF midwife, receives yet another pregnant woman at the MSF maternity. “Burundians are very stoic by nature. You will hardly ever hear them scream when they give birth, even though there is no epidural available here. Those who deliver for the first time might moan, but the tradition here is to stay silent.”
Mothers and their newborns stay only a few hours in the post-partum room. If there is no medical need for them or their baby to stay, they are directly sent home after having received supplementary vitamins. They will come back a week later for a medical checkup.

Tanzania

Humanitarian response in refugee camps still falling behind

"Although agencies have begun to scale up assistance, the humanitarian response still does not match the rate of new arrivals," says David Nash, head of mission for MSF. Project Update - 1 Mar 2017

Sixteen-year-old Yousef is improving every day after an intense operation and regular physiotherapy at the MSF Reconstructive Surgery Hospital in Amman, Jordan. Yousef suffered third-degree burns, and was unable to move his upper body after he was attacked by thieves, who set fire to him and stole his motorbike in Baghdad, Iraq. “After the attack, he used to stay in his room, and not want to see anyone, but since the surgery, and being at the hospital, he socialises with everyone, he doesn’t want to leave the place, he has so many friends here,” says Yousef’s mother. Pictured here, Yousef is working with physiotherapist Sajdy Moalla, developing strength and mobility in his arms and neck, to prevent further contractions in the future. Yousef’s dream is to be able to go to America one day, to visit his relatives in California.

Jordan

A new life for war-wounded Iraqis

"The need for reconstructive surgery in Iraq is very big due to the continuous conflict since 2003 and the financial situation our country is facing," says Dr Omar. Project Update - 27 Feb 2017

Roda is a mother of two. She attended the clinic with both children suffering from severe malnutrition. They had extensive skin disease, as they were both suffering from scabies and infection.

South Sudan

Protracted conflict at root of nutrition crisis

“The extreme level of violence has had a severe impact on people’s ability to meet basic needs such as safe drinking water, food supplies, shelter and healthcare,” says MSF project coordinator Nicolas Peissel. Project Update - 21 Feb 2017

The MSF-supported hospital in Ma’arat Al Numan before it was attacked and destroyed on Monday 15th Feb. At least 25 people were killed, including nine staff members.
The 30-bed hospital had 54 staff, two operating theatres, an outpatient department and an emergency room. The outpatient department treated around 1500 people a month, the ER carried out an average of 1,100 consultations a month, and around 140 operations a month, mainly orthopaedic and general surgery, were carried out in the operating theatres.

MSF has been supporting this hospital since September 2015 and covered all the needs of the facility including provision of medical supplies and running costs.

Attacks on medical care

Hospital bombings: Building evidence with images

Nearly 100 medical facilities belonging to, or supported by, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) have been bombed since 2015. Project Update - 15 Feb 2017

Measles is one of the leading causes of death among young children globally even though a safe and cost-effective vaccine is available

Democratic Republic of Congo

Fighting measles in South Kivu

"The impact is immediate. We've saved many lives. People were very happy because they were also really worried about the outbreak and they had only received aid sporadically." Project Update - 8 Feb 2017

A MSF doctor is doing medical check up in the main ward of the MSF hospital in Mellut togehter with clinical officers and nurses.

South Sudan

MSF closes project in Melut after three years

"MSF's role as first responder was crucial at the start of the emergency. We were able to take care of the displaced population as they arrived at the beginning of 2014," says Marta Cazorla, MSF field coordinator for Melut. Project Update - 30 Jan 2017

During 2016, MSF expanded its activities in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, and its sister city Comayagüela, where it provides mental healthcare for victims of various types of violence, including kidnapping, extortion, assault, threats and other high-impact violent events. MSF’s mental health teams provide individual sessions, group sessions and activities such as psychosocial workshops. “We try to work on the emotions, feelings and thoughts that people experience as a result of what happened to them,” says MSF mental health supervisor Edgard Boquín

Honduras

Mental healthcare for victims of violence

During 2016, MSF expanded its activities in Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela, where it provides mental healthcare for victims of violence. Project Update - 26 Jan 2017

Centraal Afrikaanse Republiek, CAR, Bangui, Februari 2014.

Many people displaced by the conflict have found refuge in Mboko airport, Bangui, CAR.

Foto: Sven Torfinn

Central African Republic

Five reasons to care about the closure of Mpoko camp

Mpoko has now closed. What became a symbol of the huge needs of the Central African people has disappeared, but the country's problems persist. Project Update - 24 Jan 2017

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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