Médecins Sans Frontières is expanding its medical activities in Venezuela, where years of economic and political crisis are taking a heavy toll on households and health facilities alike. Project Update - 24 Jul 2019

Libya

“A night in which our worst fears would come to pass”

Sam Turner, MSF Head of Mission in Libya, recounts a night in which our worst fears would come to pass. The forced return of people fleeing Libya must stop. Voices from the Field - 23 Jul 2019

Last year, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) assisted almost 4,000 survivors across the country; in the MSF project at the Bangui Community Hospital alone, more than 800 people have been treated in the first half of this year. In order to give the community access to treatment, MSF has extended the Community Hospital project on the outskirts of Bangui, in the popular district of Bédé-Combattant.

Central African Republic

Silence aggravates the wounds of sexual violence

MSF assisted 4,000 victims of sexual violence in the Central African Republic in 2018. Our team at Bangui community hospital have treated more than 800 people in the first half of this year alone. Project Update - 23 Jul 2019

Dr Hassan Shams El-Din works as a psychiatrist, one day a week, at MSF’s clinic in Wadi Khaled. He is seen here in a session with Kharma, one of his patients, a Syrian woman who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression following the death of her husband. He has been seeing her regularly for about a year.

الدكتور حسان شمس الدين طبيب نفسي يتواجد في عيادة أطباء بلا حدود في وادي خالد يوماً واحداً في الأسبوع. في هذه الصورة، يجلس مع خرمة، مريضة سورية تعاني من اضطراب ما بعد الصدمة والاكتئاب منذ وفاة زوجها. يتابع الطبيب حالتها منذ حوالي عام.

Mental health

Tackling stigma one patient at a time in Lebanon

Although mental health issues are common in the community, they are still faced with stigma in the town of Wadi Khaled, northern Lebanon. The clear lack of mental health professionals in Akkar governorate makes way for an increase in superstitious beliefs. Project Update - 22 Jul 2019

Press conference announcing the relaunch of search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean together with SOS Mediterranee.

Spokesperson during press conference:

- Dr. Joanne Liu, International President of Médecins sans Frontières (MSF)

- Hassiba Hadj-Sahraoui, MSF Humanitarian Affairs Advisor for Libya/SAR

- Sophie Beau, Co-Fournder and Vice President of SOS MEDITERRANEE

- François Thomas, President of SOS MEDITERRANEE France

- Frédéric Penard, Director of Operations SOS MEDITERRANEE

Mediterranean migration

MSF resumes search and rescue operations with Ocean Viking

MSF International President Dr Joanne Liu's speech in Paris on 22 July on MSF's decision to rejoin partner SOS MEDITERANNEE in search and rescue operations in the Central Mediterranean sea with new boat, the Ocean Viking. Speech - 22 Jul 2019

About Ocean Viking:

The Ocean Viking is a Norwegian offshore supply ship with a Norwegian International flag.

It was originally conceived for rescues, as an Emergency Response and Rescue Vessel (ERRV) - a stand-by offshore vessel ready for rescuing a large number of passengers and taking care of a large number of people in case of mass casualties.

Built in 1986, it is 69 metres in length and 15.5 metres long. It is fully equipped to perform search and rescue with four high speed rescue boats, as well as a medical clinic with consultation, triage and recovery rooms. The ship can take up to 200 survivors on board.

The MSF team who are in charge of the medical and humanitarian needs of the rescued people on board consist of nine people: four medics (one doctor, two nurses, one midwife), a Logistician, one Cultural Mediator, a Humanitarian Affairs Officer, a Field Communications Manager and a Project Coordinator who leads the team.

The SOS MEDITERRANEE team, who are in charge of the search and rescue, consists of 12 people, and are led by the Search and Rescue Coordinator. Then there are a further 9 people who are part of the ship’s marine crew and are employed by the ship owner.

Mediterranean migration

MSF resumes search and rescue amid deteriorating conditions in Libya

We have announced that, in partnership with SOS MEDITERRANEE, we are returning to save lives in the Central Mediterranean Sea with a new ship, the Ocean Viking. Press Release - 21 Jul 2019

Natali and Katerine were sexually abused by their grandfatehr (their mothers father). He has since been incarcerated. Meanwhile the girls and their mother have all received psychiatric treatment for the trauma of these occurances and have found the treatment very beneficial. This is the last of their 8 sessions with MSF psychologist Gracia and they are very grateful for her help.

Honduras

Emergency contraceptive pill vital for sexual assault victims

The prohibition of ECP in Honduras urgently needs to be overturned so that a comprehensive health protocol for victims of sexual violence can be validated and put into practice. Project Update - 19 Jul 2019

MSF provides primary healthcare, sexual and reproductive healthcare and mental healthcare to migrants and asylum-seekers from Venezuela and to Colombians unable to access to the health system in the provinces of La Guajira, Norte de Santander and Arauca.

Colombia

The uncertain lives of Venezuelan migrants on the Colombian border

Venezuelans who have fled their country's severe economical and political crisis are struggling to have their healthcare needs met in Colombia. There, MSF teams are plugging the gaps in a system which is struggling to cope with the new arrivals. Project Update - 17 Jul 2019

Patient at the support group, Matsanjeni clinic (Shiselweni region). In Eswatini, MSF is working to fight the dual epidemic of HIV and TB.
The treatment for DR forms of TB is long, sometimes over two years, and often has very difficult side-effects. MSF organizes support groups and provides counseling to patients
to help them stick with their treatment.

HIV/AIDS

Fight is not over as AIDS deaths remain high

Deaths from HIV/AIDS have stagnated over the last three years, with nearly 770,000 people dying in 2018. A lack of funding from donors and a lack of access to diagnosis and treatment, particularly for opportunistic infections like TB, are hampering efforts to reduce mortality. Press Release - 16 Jul 2019

A child vaccinated against Measles gets marked in order to avoid confusion during a vaccination day in the island of Kassa, Guinea. Doctors without Borders (MSF) is launching a large scale measles vaccination campaign in Conakry, the capital of Guina. Since the beginning of the year there have been 3468 confirmed cases and 14 deaths dues to measles in Guinea.

Public health

Eight things we've learned from MSF operational research projects

In two video features, eight researchers explain how their work supports MSF projects in Greece, Guinea, Bangladesh, Iraq, South Africa, Zimbabwe and beyond. Interview - 16 Jul 2019

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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Addressing mounting health needs in Venezuela