Access to Health Care is not a Luxury

Access to Health Care is not a Luxury

This article was written by a chatbot. Its content, information, and data do not represent the viewpoints of MSF.

Why free access to health care is significant?

Free access to healthcare is significant because it ensures that everyone has equal access to essential health services, regardless of their ability to pay. Here are some reasons why free access to healthcare is significant:

  • Promotes Equality: When healthcare services are free, everyone has equal access to the same level of care, regardless of their socio-economic background. This promotes equality and helps to reduce health disparities.
  • Prevents Financial Burden: Healthcare costs can be a significant financial burden for individuals and families, especially for those with low incomes or chronic health conditions. Free access to healthcare can help prevent financial hardship and debt caused by medical bills.
  • Improves Health Outcomes: Free access to healthcare can improve health outcomes by enabling people to seek timely medical care without worrying about the cost. This can lead to early detection and treatment of diseases, which can prevent complications and improve overall health.
  • Reduces Health Disparities: Lack of access to healthcare is one of the main contributors to health disparities. Free access to healthcare can help reduce these disparities and ensure that everyone has equal access to essential health services.
  • Benefits Society: A healthy population benefits society as a whole. When people have access to healthcare, they are more likely to be productive and contribute to the economy. This can result in a stronger, healthier society.

In summary, free access to healthcare is significant because it promotes equality, prevents financial burden, improves health outcomes, reduces health disparities, and benefits society as a whole.

Is providing free access to health care possible?

Providing free access to healthcare is possible, but it depends on the resources and priorities of the country or organization providing the healthcare. Here are some ways in which free access to healthcare can be provided:

  • Government-funded healthcare: Governments can provide free access to healthcare by funding healthcare services through taxes and other revenue sources. This is the approach taken by many countries with universal healthcare systems.
  • Non-profit healthcare organizations: Non-profit healthcare organizations can provide free access to healthcare by raising funds through donations, grants, and other sources. These organizations can operate in areas where government-funded healthcare is insufficient or non-existent.
  • Employer-sponsored healthcare: Some employers offer healthcare benefits to their employees, which can include free or low-cost healthcare services. This approach is common in the United States, where many employers provide health insurance to their employees.
  • Public-private partnerships: Public-private partnerships can be formed to provide free access to healthcare. This involves collaboration between the government and private sector organizations to fund and operate healthcare services.
  • Donor-funded healthcare: Donors can provide funding for healthcare services in low-income countries or areas affected by disasters or conflicts. This can enable free access to healthcare services for those who would otherwise not be able to afford it.

In conclusion, providing free access to healthcare is possible through various approaches, including government-funded healthcare, non-profit healthcare organizations, employer-sponsored healthcare, public-private partnerships, and donor-funded healthcare. However, the feasibility and sustainability of these approaches depend on the availability of resources and the priorities of the organizations providing the healthcare services.

What are the key obstacles for providing free access to health care?

Providing free access to healthcare can be challenging due to several key obstacles, including:

  • Funding: Providing free access to healthcare requires significant funding, which can be difficult to obtain. Governments or organizations must find ways to allocate sufficient resources to fund healthcare services.
  • Limited Resources: Healthcare systems may have limited resources, including healthcare providers, medical equipment, and supplies. Providing free access to healthcare can increase demand for these resources, which may exceed the available supply.
  • Political Will: Providing free access to healthcare requires political will and support. Governments or organizations must prioritize healthcare as a basic human right and allocate the necessary resources to provide it.
  • Sustainability: Providing free access to healthcare must be sustainable over the long term. Healthcare systems must be able to provide ongoing funding and resources to ensure that free access to healthcare remains available to all.
  • Cultural and Social Barriers: Cultural and social barriers can also limit the provision of free access to healthcare. Some communities may be hesitant to accept free healthcare services due to cultural or social factors, such as mistrust of government or healthcare providers.

In summary, providing free access to healthcare requires addressing funding, limited resources, political will, sustainability, and cultural and social barriers. Despite these obstacles, providing free access to healthcare is essential to ensure that everyone has equal access to essential healthcare services, regardless of their ability to pay.

What are the key mechanisms that can help to make free access to health care better?

There are several key mechanisms that can help to make free access to healthcare better, including:

  • Universal Health Coverage: Universal health coverage is a mechanism that ensures that everyone has access to essential healthcare services, regardless of their ability to pay. This can be achieved through government-funded healthcare or other mechanisms that ensure everyone has access to healthcare.
  • Health Insurance: Health insurance can be used as a mechanism to provide free access to healthcare services. This can be done by providing insurance to all citizens or through government-funded insurance programs for low-income individuals.
  • Telemedicine: Telemedicine is a mechanism that can help to make free access to healthcare services better by enabling remote consultations with healthcare providers. This can be especially helpful in rural or remote areas where access to healthcare services is limited.
  • Community Health Workers: Community health workers are trained healthcare providers who work in communities to provide basic healthcare services. They can help to improve access to healthcare services in underserved areas and can provide cost-effective solutions to healthcare needs.
  • Public-Private Partnerships: Public-private partnerships can be used as a mechanism to provide free access to healthcare services. This involves collaboration between government and private sector organizations to fund and operate healthcare services.
  • Health Education: Health education can be used as a mechanism to improve access to healthcare services by empowering individuals with knowledge and skills to prevent and manage health issues. This can be done through public health campaigns, community outreach, and health education programs.

In summary, universal health coverage, health insurance, telemedicine, community health workers, public-private partnerships, and health education are some key mechanisms that can help to make free access to healthcare better. By implementing these mechanisms, healthcare systems can improve access to healthcare services, reduce health disparities, and ensure that everyone has equal access to essential healthcare services.

What is nongovernmental medical organizations such as doctors without borders doing to help reach a world with free access to healthcare?

Non-governmental medical organizations such as Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) are playing a significant role in helping to reach a world with free access to healthcare by providing essential medical services in areas affected by conflict, disasters, and epidemics. Some of the specific actions that MSF takes to help reach a world with free access to healthcare include:

  • Providing Medical Care: MSF provides medical care to people affected by crises, including conflict, natural disasters, and epidemics. This includes emergency medical care, surgical interventions, and treatment for infectious diseases.
  • Training Local Healthcare Providers: MSF works to train local healthcare providers to improve healthcare capacity in areas where healthcare infrastructure is limited. This helps to ensure that healthcare services are sustainable and accessible over the long term.
  • Advocating for Improved Healthcare Access: MSF advocates for improved healthcare access for vulnerable populations, including refugees and internally displaced persons. This includes advocating for policy changes that support healthcare access for all.
  • Conducting Research: MSF conducts research on healthcare issues in areas affected by crises, including infectious diseases, malnutrition, and mental health. This research helps to inform the development of effective healthcare interventions.
  • Responding to Emergencies: MSF responds to emergencies around the world, providing medical care and support to people affected by natural disasters, conflicts, and epidemics.

In summary, non-governmental medical organizations such as Doctors Without Borders play a critical role in helping to reach a world with free access to healthcare by providing essential medical services, training local healthcare providers, advocating for improved healthcare access, conducting research, and responding to emergencies.

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Pharmaceutical company ViiV must provide transparency on HIV prevention drug

Pharmaceutical company ViiV must provide transparency on HIV prevention drug

GENEVA – Pharmaceutical corporation ViiV must immediately provide transparency on the current available volume and planned geographic distribution of long-acting cabotegravir (CAB-LA), an HIV prevention medicine, says Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). There is an urgent need to expedite the drug’s access for people in high-HIV-burden and low- and middle-income countries, where it could have the biggest impact on preventing HIV infections. 

CAB-LA, administered as an injection every two months, is currently the most effective form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for people at high risk of contracting HIV, and is more discreet than the once-daily oral PrEP pill. CAB-LA could be key to turning the tide against new HIV infections, particularly as the daily oral PrEP pill can be a burden that undermines adherence.

Honestly, ViiV should be ashamed: it has a lifesaving HIV prevention drug at its fingertips but is failing to ensure there’s enough available for people who need it.
Dr Helen Bygrave, Chronic Disease Advisor for MSF's Access Campaign

However, ViiV’s continued lack of transparency around CAB-LA’s current available supply and how it will be distributed, as well as clinical research conditions set by ViiV for procurement, are acting as barriers to accessing this medicine, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. 

Viiv has been unable to assure MSF of the availability of any amount of long-acting cabotegravir for MSF medical programmes in Eswatini and Mozambique in 2023, where we plan to start offering the drug to people at high risk of HIV. With ViiV needing a six-month lead-time to process MSF’s order, their failure so far to provide transparency on CAB-LA’s availability and price may result in the drug not reaching people in our care in 2023; the wait time for many people may be over two years.

“For over eight months, we’ve been in contract negotiations with ViiV to procure CAB-LA for use in MSF programmes,” says Dr Bygrave. “Viiv has been adamant that there would be sufficient supply of CAB-LA – astonishingly even arguing that demand for the drug would be low.

“And yet, we’re currently unable to procure CAB-LA to meet the demand we’re seeing in our medical programmes and hearing about in our discussions with health officials in low- and middle-income countries,” says Dr Bygrave.

For people who need CAB-LA, ViiV’s access strategy is irresponsible and short-sighted. Their current global monopoly and supply is unable to meet urgent global health needs, which is concerning as it may take as long as four to five years for generic companies to make generic CAB-LA commercially available.

Until there are more producers on the market and normal procurement can proceed with appropriate supplies of CAB-LA, the corporation must reprioritise its global distribution to people at highest risk of contracting HIV.
Dr Helen Bygrave, Chronic Disease Advisor for MSF's Access Campaign

“It is infuriating that ViiV is deciding where CAB-LA will be available regardless of urgent health needs. Until there are more producers on the market and normal procurement can proceed with appropriate supplies of CAB-LA, the corporation must reprioritise its global distribution to people at highest risk of contracting HIV, especially in low- and middle-income countries. This will have the biggest impact in terms of preventing disease,” says Bygrave.

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Inadequate Water and Sanitation Services in northern east Lebanon

Inadequate Water and Sanitation Services in northern east Lebanon

Beirut, Thursday 30th of March 2023 – Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is gravely concerned about the health risks posed by the lack of access to clean water and dire sanitation conditions in Hermel, Masharieh Al Qaa, and Arsal in northeastern Lebanon. The aging water and sanitation infrastructure which has been further weakened by the ongoing economic crisis, combined with the insufficient aid in that aspect puts people at a heightened risk of water-borne diseases and skin infections, in these areas.

In the past month, our teams have treated 138 households for skin infections in Arsal and Hermel. Since the beginning of March, our teams have also recorded 172 cases of acute watery diarrhea, with a 21% increase of cases observed in the past week. Both health conditions are normally linked to exposure to poor water quality and dire sanitation conditions.
Dr. Marcelo Fernandez, MSF Head of Mission in Lebanon

The surfacing of skin infections and acute diarrhea among other gastrointestinal diseases is appearing just months following the declaration of a cholera outbreak in Lebanon. Such conditions appear and transmit when people consume or come into contact with contaminated water.

"Urgent actions must be taken to secure the access of people to clean, safe water and adequate sanitation services to protect the health and well-being of the people and avoid further health consequences."

Dr. Marcelo Fernandez, MSF Head of Mission in Lebanon

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Published on March 30, 2023

The ongoing economic and political crisis in Lebanon has further weakened the old water and sewage infrastructure, which has not been adequately maintained or updated over the years. Underserved areas like Hermel and Arsal have been particularly affected by this. With shortages of humanitarian funding, fuel, and supplies such as chlorine and spare parts, the water sector is unable to function properly due to the increasing maintenance costs resulting in inadequate water supply. On the other hand, lack proper sewage system is leading to open sewage and waste disposal practice resulting in contamination of water. In many areas, the problem is exacerbated by the lack of centralized water treatment facilities.

In parallel, impacted by the financial crisis people are unable to afford private water supply. According to UNICEF[1], for many vulnerable households, cost of private water is simply too high, as it represents 263% of the monthly average income. As a result, people relying on local wells and individual water sources that can be unreliable and unsafe.

An assessment done by MSF teams in the north (Wadi Khaled) and northeast (Arsal, Masharieh Al Qaa & Hermel) of the country, in early October 2022, showed that water sources – whether water trucking, wells, or water networks lack chlorine residual indicating a concern over the quality of water reaching the people. “Usually, a sufficient amount of chlorine should be added to the water to inactivate the microorganisms that could cause disease. The added chlorine must be sufficient to also prevent recontamination during the piping and storage processes” explains Dr. Fernandez. “It is an essential element to maintain the quality of water through the distribution network” he adds.

The provision of safe water and sanitation facilities should be a top priority for international humanitarian actors. “Otherwise, the situation could quickly turn into a medical emergency ” says Dr. Fernandez. “MSF is providing medical treatment, and distributing hygeine kits to the affected communities to address the health needs posed by the situation. However, longer-term sustainable solutions are needed to ensure that communities are not at constant exposure to preventable diseases and infections” he concludes.

[1] https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/water-supply-systems-verge-collapse-lebanon-over-71-cent-people-risk-losing-access

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Ten years of atrocities and violence in Central African Republic

Ten years of atrocities and violence in Central African Republic

Ten years after the start of the third civil war in the Central African Republic, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teamed up with photographer Adrienne Surprenant to meet Central African families to capture the consequences of these years of violence. 

By way of 15 first-hand accounts collected in Bangui and Carnot, the photographic and audio documentary The Events highlights the immense destruction within families, their homes and their memories.

This is the story of a country bled dry and of the people who live there, of the familes hit by the repeated extreme violence sweeping across the Central African Republic. It is the story, among others, of Joseph, whose son was murdered on Christmas Eve; of Tatiana, who had to flee her home when she was heavily pregnant; of Louise, who underwent an amputation following a gunshot wound; and of Louison, traumatised by the death of a man he tried in vain to save.

In March 2013, rebel groups in the north of the country united in a coalition, forming the Seleka, and took power in Bangui. This third civil war turned the daily lives of thousands of families into one of fear and struggle for survival.

Looting and atrocities committed by Seleka soon led to deadly reprisals by Anti-balaka militias, self-defence committees made up of villagers and former soldiers, while UN peacekeeping forces and French troops were deployed in the country.

In Bangui and in the west of the country, Muslims, ethnic Fulani or people assimilated to the routed Seleka fighters, were targeted: they were hemmed in, hunted down, killed and forced into exile. 

In such circumstances, where can you shelter your family? How can you adapt and continue to be a family in the middle of a war? And how can you rebuild in moments of respite?

Over the past 10 years, both the acts of violence and political alliances have changed in the course of the upheavals experienced by the Central African Republic. The military counter-offensive by the Central African government, supported by Russian allies, has allowed the state to regain control of the country’s main cities and roads. Driven out to the periphery and weakened, the armed groups are nevertheless still capable of inflicting harm, and both sides are regularly accused of atrocities.

In 2023, MSF teams in the country comprise nearly 3,000 people, the vast majority of whom are Central African. Our teams provide numerous medical services such as paediatrics, trauma surgery and HIV/AIDS care. Every year, around 900,000 consultations are carried out by our teams, in partnership with the health authorities.

Watch the documentary The Events.

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Yemen: Abs hospital overwhelmed as medical needs surge

Yemen: Abs hospital overwhelmed as medical needs surge

8 March 2023 – The high number of people seeking treatment at Abs hospital, in Yemen’s Hajjah governorate, has left hospital staff and essential services overwhelmed, according to international medical organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Patients frequently have to share beds, and the emergency room, maternity unit, neonatal unit and inpatient therapeutic feeding centre frequently operate at way more than 100 per cent capacity. MSF, whose teams have worked in the hospital since 2015, says it has reached the limit of its capacity to respond.

In response to the increase in patient numbers over the years, we’ve adapted our support to Abs hospital by extending different departments, increasing bed capacity and consolidating human resources. This support to Abs hospital has become one of MSF’s biggest humanitarian responses worldwide, but today we have reached the limit of our capacity to respond, in terms of space, human resources and supply.
Caroline Ducarme, MSF Head of Mission

The increased demand on Abs hospital’s services is due to a number of factors, including the protracted conflict in Yemen; the lack of affordable quality primary healthcare services, which means that patients who would otherwise seek care in local clinics are obliged to go to hospitals for treatment, often not arriving until their condition is serious; and the poor living conditions in camps for displaced people in Abs district, including a lack of clean water and sanitation, leading to disease outbreaks.

The situation was exacerbated in 2022 when funding cuts caused several health providers to stop working in Hajjah governorate and nearby Al Hudayda governorate. As a result, services were discontinued at several health facilities, while others were left with insufficient medical supplies, increasing the pressure on Abs hospital.

Even though we have significantly developed our activities in Abs hospital over the years, increasing bed capacity from 33 to 288, and supporting more than 80 per cent of the hospital departments, we are still not able to cover everyone’s needs.
Caroline Ducarme, MSF Head of Mission

Abs hospital is the only hospital for the around one million people in the region, and MSF is the only international organisation with a permanent presence in the area. In 2022, MSF’s teams at Abs hospital team provided 79,325 emergency consultations, assisted 10,181 deliveries, cared for 3,095 newborn babies in the neonatal unit, treated 2,944 malnourished children in the inpatient therapeutic feeding centre, performed 5,237 surgical interventions and treated 1,202 patients for malaria.

While MSF will continue to support Abs hospital in 2023, there is an urgent need for additional health organisations to step up and support the provision of healthcare in the district, where people have a range of urgent health needs, including the risk of malnutrition and measles.  

The drastic impact of the protracted conflict on the health system in Yemen requires additional efforts from donors and humanitarian organisations to develop and strengthen the healthcare system to ensure that quality and affordable healthcare is accessible to all in Abs district, in Hajjah governorate and across Yemen. Urgent action is also required from health authorities and humanitarian and development organisations to address the gaps in primary healthcare, to ensure timely access to medical care and to reduce risks of complications, which lead to an increased demand for secondary healthcare services
Caroline Ducarme, MSF Head of Mission

MSF is proceeding with the reorganization of its activities in Abs hospital in collaboration with the Ministry of Health. This plan which was launched in 2022, includes revising the referral and admission criteria for some services and handing over some services to the Ministry of Public Health, in addition to implementing adjustments in the management of human resources. Through this reorganisation, MSF aims to improve the quality of care and focusing on the most vulnerable patients and on lifesaving activities, while building up the capacity of the national health system to ensure sustainable solutions for healthcare provision in Abs district.

To learn more about MSF support to Abs hospital, please check this online page: Exposure page Eng

MSF has been working in Yemen since 1986 and its teams have worked continuously in the country since 2007. In 2022, MSF teams worked in 12 hospitals and provided support to another 16 health facilities across 13 governorates.

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Bangladesh: Cuts to refugees’ food rations will have serious health impact, warns MSF

Bangladesh: Cuts to refugees’ food rations will have serious health impact, warns MSF

2 March 2023 – Cuts to the food rations received by around one million Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar district, Bangladesh, will increase their risk of malnutrition and have a serious impact on their health, says international medical organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF). Citing lack of funding, yesterday, the World Food Programme (WFP) cut rations by 17 per cent, bringing the number of calories per person to below the accepted minimum standard of 2,100 calories per day.  

Rohingyas in the world’s largest grouping of refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar district are almost completely dependent on food assistance, as they are confined to the camps and prohibited from finding formal employment, preventing them from supplementing meagre food rations which are already below the recommended daily calorie intake.

A reduced calorie intake puts people at risk of malnutrition and anaemia and weakens their immune systems, increasing the risk of future outbreaks of infectious diseases such as measles and cholera. 

Many pregnant women receiving antenatal care at MSF health facilities are already malnourished. Last year, 12 per cent of pregnant women at Kutupalong hospital and Balukhali clinic were diagnosed with acute malnutrition and 30 per cent with anaemia.

Mothers who are malnourished and anaemic are at a higher risk of experiencing complications during childbirth, while their newborn babies are more likely to have poor health outcomes. Even at the current level of food rations, 28 per cent of babies born in Kutupalong hospital and Balukhali clinic have a low birthweight, heightening their chance of becoming sick and malnourished. 

Many refugees in the camps also suffer from chronic diseases such as heart disease, hypertension and type II diabetes. MSF currently provides care for a cohort of more than 4,500 patients. For non-communicable disease patients, a healthy diet is a critical part of managing their health conditions. Reduced access to adequate food would increase their reliance on medical care, potentially increasing demand for already overburdened health services in the camps.  

Health services in the camps are already under enormous pressure as they struggle to deal with the medical impacts of people’s dire living conditions, including frequent outbreaks of scabies, dengue fever and cholera – the result of poor sanitation, stagnant water and overflowing latrines.    

MSF is concerned that a reduction in food rations would also heighten the sense of desperation already prevalent throughout the camps and could drive more Rohingya to undertake highly dangerous sea and land journeys in search of a better life and a more hopeful future. 

MSF is committed to providing services to the Rohingya population as long as needed, but covering more medical needs in the Cox’s Bazaar camps is outstripping MSF’s capacities, Funding has gone down and the number of aid organisations working in Cox’s Bazar has declined by almost 80 per cent. Donors must reprioritise the Rohingya and reaffirm their funding commitments.
Claudio Miglietta, MSF country representative in Bangladesh.

MSF has provided medical care in the refugee camps in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar district since 1992. Last year, MSF teams provided more than 750,000 outpatient consultations and admitted more than 22,000 patients for inpatient care.

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Italy: MSF providing support to survivors of the Crotone shipwreck

Italy: MSF providing support to survivors of the Crotone shipwreck

Crotone, 28 February 2023 – A team from Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is offering psychological support to the survivors of a shipwreck that killed at least 62 people, including 12 children, a few hundred meters from Steccato di Cutro, southern Italy, on 26 February. About 180 people, mostly from Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan, were travelling on a wooden fishing boat that had left Türkiye four to five days earlier.

According to reports, the entire group fell into the water about 150 metres from the shore, most likely after the wooden boat hit rocks on the coast of eastern Calabria in bad weather. The body of one person was found tens of kilometres away, due to strong currents.

At least 20 survivors, including one person in need of intensive care, were hospitalised in a local public hospital. There are now about 60 survivors in the asylum seeker reception centre in Crotone, the majority of them Afghans.

[The survivors] are heavily traumatised. Everyone has lost someone. There is a 16-year-old boy from Afghanistan who lost his sister. He didn't have the courage to tell his parents. They had run away [to help her]. As a woman, her brother told us, she thought she no longer had a future in her country
Mara Eliana Tunno, MSF psychologist

MSF teams have provided psychological support to around 60 people and will continue to assist in the next days, in agreement with the Italian authorities. Among the accounts from survivors heard by our teams, there are minors who have lost their parents and family members. A 12-year-old boy lost his entire family, while a 17-year-old child who was hospitalised lost his parents. There is another boy who spoke of losing his 6-year-old brother to hypothermia four hours after the shipwreck.

While most deaths at sea still occur along the central Mediterranean route between Libya and Italy, where MSF operates the rescue vessel Geo Barents, in recent months MSF teams have observed an increase in the number of people making the dangerous crossing from Türkiye to Southern Italy. On 23 February, the Geo Barents was unfairly detained and fined by the Italian government. Even though this measure directly targets MSF, the real price will be paid by those fleeing across the central Mediterranean, who will be left without assistance.

This tragic shipwreck is a painful reminder that restrictive migration policies will not stop desperate people from fleeing. People will continue to risk their lives as they often have no other option. The Italian and EU governments must stop criminalising migration and humanitarian assistance. They must instead focus on providing adequate safe and legal channels to migrate and improved mechanisms to assist and protect people on the move
Sergio Di Dato, MSF project leader

Background information

MSF teams in Italy have been assisting refugees, asylum seekers and migrants at disembarkation points for several years. Staff, including psychologists and intercultural mediators specifically trained to offer psychological first aid (PFA) attend disembarkation ports, hotspots or reception centres. PFA activities are aimed mainly at relatives and friends of the victims of a shipwreck, with the objective to help address their trauma via emotional and mental support. The team also offers basic services to all survivors, including facilitating access to medical treatment, providing information and referring vulnerable cases to the competent authority.

In 2022, MSF Italy launched a project in Roccella Jonica, near Crotone, to provide medical and psychological support at disembarkation points, with a focus on identifying people with medical vulnerabilities who can be guaranteed continuity of care.

MSF has been active and engaged in search and rescue activities since 2015, working on eight different search and rescue vessels (alone or in partnership with other NGOs) and rescuing more than 85,000 people. Since launching search and rescue operations on board the Geo Barents in May 2021, MSF has rescued 6,194 people (including 3,742 in 2022), recovered the bodies of 11 people who died at sea and assisted in the delivery of a baby on board.

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Repeated violence and movement restrictions affect MSF staff and patients in Nablus, Palestine

Repeated violence and movement restrictions affect MSF staff and patients in Nablus, Palestine

A raid by Israeli forces in the Old city of Nablus killed 11 Palestinians and injured over 100 on February 22, 2023. Later, when two settlers were shot and killed on February 26th in the Nablus suburb of Huwara, Israeli forces closed access to the city. That night, settlers set fire to Palestinian property including cars, houses and shops, injuring over 400 more people and killing one, per a Palestine Red Crescent report.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) provides mental health services in Nablus and donated medical equipment and emergency kits to a local clinic and hospital following the incidents. However, these repeated events affect both MSF operations and the mental health of Palestinian residents. Movement restrictions in the city limit access to MSF services for residents, who fear for their safety when leaving their homes. Road closures also affect MSF staff trying to reach their workplace. “Checkpoints around Nablus are closed as a result of Sunday’s violence, which on Monday kept our staff from going to the nearby city of Qalqilya, where we also provide mental health services,” Tareq Zaid, MSF Field Coordinator in Nablus said. Nablus residents, already affected by increasing insecurity, must now contend with an uptick in blockades in the first months of 2023 as violence increases throughout the West Bank, reaching levels not seen since 2000. “All this disturbs people’s personal lives: one of our staff was also not able to return to her home in Ramallah on February 26.”

Checkpoints around Nablus are closed as a result of Sunday’s violence, which on Monday kept our staff from going to the nearby city of Qalqilya, where we also provide mental health services
Tareq Zaid, MSF Field Coordinator in Nablus

Linda Gaouaou, MSF Head of Mission, said that frequent military operations affect MSF operations. “Within less than a week, the city of Nablus experienced two incidents that have kept our patients from accessing our clinics and affected our staff. These incidents reflect the norm of the past few months: a state of permanent tension in which the population has to navigate its life around recurring city closures by Israeli forces. 

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Haiti: MSF activities under threat after series of security incidents in Port-au-Prince

Haiti: MSF activities under threat after series of security incidents in Port-au-Prince

Port-au-Prince, February 24, 2023 – Recent incidents involving Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams and activities in Port-au-Prince, as well as serious threats circulating on social networks, are jeopardizing the safety of MSF staff and patients treated in its facilities, and its ability to provide care in Haiti. 

On the night of February 23, hooded gunmen attempted to break into the Médecins Sans Frontières hospital in Tabarre. “Unidentified individuals pointed their weapons at staff and banged on the door before attempting to scale the wall to enter the hospital compound,” says Mahaman Bachard Iro, coordinator of Médecins sans Frontières in Haiti, who says the individuals then left the premises. “We ask all parties to respect the medical mission we have, even as MSF remains one of the last international organizations still delivering care in the Haitian capital.” 

Earlier in the day on February 22, entrances and exits to the MSF emergency center in Turgeau were blocked and an ambulance searched. Refusing to lay down their arms, police then entered the facility to check the identity of all registered patients. 

A few weeks earlier, on February 7, another incident occurred when an ambulance clearly marked MSF was stopped and searched. Weapons were pointed at the vehicle’s passengers to check their identities, stopping the ambulance for more than 45 minutes before it was allowed to resume its journey.  

In addition, two violent clashes between armed groups have occurred since the beginning of the year just meters from the MSF hospital in Cité Soleil, resulting in the temporary closure of consultations and the temporary evacuation of some staff. In the face of these repeated and disturbing clashes, and the fact that the front line between armed groups is getting closer to the hospital, MSF fears that it will no longer be able to work safely to continue providing medical care to the population.  

It is becoming increasingly difficult to work in these conditions, and the recurrence of these incidents is endangering the safety of our medical staff and patients. These repeated obstacles to our teams moving around Port-au-Prince to transfer patients from one hospital to another, these violent intrusions into our medical facilities, and the crossfire at the gates of our health care facilities, seriously threaten the continuity of our activities.
Mahaman Bachard Iro, coordinator of Médecins sans Frontières in Haiti

 As a reminder, MSF temporarily closed the hospital in Drouillard in April 2022, permanently closed the doors of its emergency center in Martissant in June 2021 and suspended its support for the Raoul Pierre Louis hospital in Carrefour in January 2023 for security reasons. 

The teams of Médecins sans Frontières has been present in Haiti for 30 years, treating all patients in need of care in an impartial manner. We urge all parties to respect our medical mission, including patients, caregivers, hospitals and the ambulances that transport them. In this difficult context, the entire Haitian health system is on the verge of collapse, as many health structures can no longer function properly. MSF would also like to reiterate its commitment to the Haitian population, the first victims of the violence that has torn the country apart for years.  

In 2022, MSF teams, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, performed more than 4,600 surgical interventions, gave 34,200 emergency consultations, treated 2,600 gunshot wounds, 370 burn victims, and carried out 17,800 consultations in mobile clinics, 2,300 victims of sexual violence and 700 deliveries. Since the first case of cholera arrived in late September 2022, our teams have also treated more than 19,000 people.

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MSF expands relief efforts and sets up mobile clinics in quake-hit northwest Syria

MSF expands relief efforts and sets up mobile clinics in quake-hit northwest Syria

At 4.17 on the morning of Monday 6 February, Mohammad and his family were shaken awake by the first of two massive earthquakes which hit large parts of northwest Syria and south Türkiye.

“When the earthquake shook all the buildings, my wife and I took our children and ran to the school playground,” says Mohammad. “We stood there in the rain, horrified at the devastation we could see around us. Buildings had collapsed and people were trapped inside. The situation was tragic.”

Mohammad and his family were living in a school in Azmarin, in Syria’s northern Idlib province, after being displaced from their home in Jabal Al Zawiya, around 70 km away.

The earthquakes wrought major devastation, resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries and leaving many more without shelter, food or basic necessities. The disaster compounded an already desperate humanitarian situation. More than 180,000 people have been displaced by the earthquake, adding to the two million people already living in difficult and precarious circumstances after being displaced repeatedly during 12 years of war.

After hours in the cold rain, Mohammad and his family found shelter under some olive trees. Two days later, still reeling from the shock of what had happened, they took to the road in search of refuge, along with other people made homeless by the quake. “We kept moving until we reached this reception centre,” says Mohammad. “They helped us and took us in.”

Mobile clinics and relief items

MSF teams are responding to people’s medical and humanitarian needs as a result of the disaster. Initially their focus was on bolstering the emergency response capacity of local medical teams and donating essential medicines and medical supplies to health facilities and rescue teams. Today, MSF has scaled up its activities in northwest Syria, running four mobile clinics and distributing essential relief items including mattresses, hygiene items, cleaning materials and kitchen utensils.

In Idlib, Syria, MSF teams have provided 5,667 medical consultations and distributed nearly 31,000 relief items, so far. At the mobile clinics, medics provide wound care, general medical care, care for chronic diseases, sexual and reproductive healthcare, mental health support and vaccinations for children.

The earthquake has worsened the already dire situation for people in northwest Syria, where many people live in overcrowded and inadequate conditions with limited access to medical care. The mobile clinics are providing essential medical care to those who need it most
Dr Ziad Marzouk, a chronic diseases specialist, MSF’s mobile clinic team

More aid is urgently needed in northwest Syria

The earthquakes have highlighted the urgent need for humanitarian aid in northwest Syria and exposed a forgotten crisis in the region. Despite the aid that has reached some areas in recent days, there is an enormous unmet need for shelter, drinking water, washing facilities and heating equipment. People are also unable to access health care at a time where the disaster has left a huge psychological impact on people’s well being.

It is important that the humanitarian response does not fade within weeks of the earthquake but is instead strengthened and increased. The earthquake has presented new challenges in people’s ability to access basic needs including medical care. So far, in the two weeks since the earthquake, the humanitarian aid coming into northwest Syria has been too little and too slow. International aid must be urgently scaled up in order to preserve the lives and dignity of people living in affected areas.
Yasser Kamaledin, MSF head of mission for Syria

Like many others, Mohammad and his family are struggling to get through the cold winter nights without mattresses to sleep on or electricity to provide light and warmth.

“During the war, not knowing what would happen, we left our homes thinking we’d be back in a few days,” says Mohammad. “Instead we ended up with nothing. Now, following the earthquake, the same thing has happened. People are trying to help each other in any way they can, but we need at least mattresses to sleep on and light because there is no electricity. All the families here have been left with nothing.”

(Disclaimer: Mohammad is not the real name of the person mentioned in this article. The name and identifying details have been changed)

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