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Section
Health services for people affected by war
Section on how the ICRC seeks to reduce death, disease, suffering and disability in war by ensuring access to health care of a universally accepted standard. Community health, health in prison, physical rehabilitation, war surgery, and weapons and health. Information on humanitarian assistance training courses (HELP).

ref. LK-D-00014-02

Health service activities are designed to give people affected by conflict access to appropriate basic preventive and curative health care that meets universally recognized standards, a task which entails assisting local or regional health services and sometimes stepping in for them on a temporary basis.

In particular, this involves: providing care for war wounded; supporting existing health structures and if necessary providing health care to people affected by conflict; participating in visits to prisoners so as to assess all impacts on prisoners' health, and providing medical expertise to improve health in detention; providing artificial limbs and joints as well as physiotherapy to people with physical disabilities.

Key document
    1-3-2000
    Health services: introduction
    The ICRC Health Services Unit aims to assure that victims of war have access to essential preventive and curative care of a universally accepted standard. The ultimate objective is to contribute to a reduction in mortality, morbidity, suffering and disabilities caused by excessive needs or insufficient health care provision.
    (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health)
    Includes Photo

Audio Collection
    3-7-2006
    First aid in armed conflicts: new manual
    The ICRC has just published a new manual entitled First Aid in Armed Conflicts and other Situations of Armed Violence. It contains specific, practical information for those providing first aid and draws on the considerable expertise built up over many years by National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Federation and the ICRC.
    (Info resources\Audio)
    Audio Collection Includes Audio

Feature
    19-11-2008
    Pakistan: when the wind breathes over Baluchistan
    Following the earthquake in Baluchistan women in the damaged villages have been secluded as required by local customs. Now, as the ICRC’s Jessica Barry explains, their voices are rarely heard except by aid workers and medical personnel.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan)
    Feature Includes Photo

    31-10-2008
    Pakistan: earthquake victims face a gloomy winter
    With winter looming, the prospects are grim for thousands of survivors of the earthquakes in south-western Pakistan. The full extent of the devastation caused by the quakes is yet to be established. The ICRC is assessing needs and extending its support to victims.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan)
    Feature Includes Photo

    29-10-2008
    Guinea-Bissau’s Red Cross volunteers are fighting cholera
    Since May of this year, Guinea-Bissau has been in the throes of a cholera epidemic. By early October, 9,843 cases had been recorded and the death toll had risen to 178. The epidemic has hit mainly the south west of the country and the capital, Bissau, where various agencies have been working. In the isolated enclave of Sao Domingos, the ICRC has been mobilizing and training volunteers from the Guinea-Bissau Red Cross and supporting their efforts to fight the disease.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Guinea-Bissau)
    Feature Includes Photo

    29-10-2008
    Pakistan: earthquakes devastate Baluchistan
    Earthquakes have jolted south-western Pakistan, causing death and destruction and adding to the misery already caused by years of fighting. The ICRC is assessing the effects of the disaster and extending its support to the Pakistani people.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan)
    Feature Includes Photo

    21-10-2008
    Philippines: caring for the sick and wounded
    Since the Philippines government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front resumed fighting in August, medical personnel in Central Mindanao have been working around the clock. The ICRC’s Iolanda Jaquemet talks about their daunting task.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Philippines)
    Feature Includes Photo

    15-10-2008
    Georgia: you can't put hope in a box
    Kakha Khasaia's career with the Red Cross spans 16 years during which he has done practically every job, from guard to head of office. Jessica Barry caught up with him at his base in Zugdidi.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Eastern Europe and Central Asia\Georgia)
    Feature Includes Photo

    1-10-2008
    Georgia: the elderly hard-hit by conflict
    When conflict in Georgia drove thousands of people from their homes, those too old and weak to flee stayed behind, often isolated. Zoé Brabant, a member of the ICRC mobile health team that went into Gori to assist them, shares her experience.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Eastern Europe and Central Asia\Georgia)
    Feature

    10-9-2008
    Georgia: ICRC mobile clinic helps villagers with chronic diseases
    For people cut off from health services in remote villages affected by the conflict in Georgia and South Ossetia, the mobile clinic run by the Norwegian Red Cross and ICRC is a lifeline in more ways than one.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Eastern Europe and Central Asia\Georgia)
    Feature

    21-8-2008
    Pakistan: a lucky escape
    Life is precious. Tajir Hussain and his family know just how precious. His life was ebbing away as he lay in a deep coma. Then he recovered miraculously just when all hope seemed lost. The ICRC’s Sitara Jabeen reports.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan)
    Feature

    11-8-2008
    Côte-d'Ivoire: hospital reprieves lifeline
    The Korhogo hospital has few resources and scores of indigent patients. But once in a while its dedicated staff, working together with the ICRC, manage to save a life – like that of Amandine.* Report by Iolanda Jaquemet.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Cote d'Ivoire)
    Feature

    19-5-2008
    Afghanistan: students at Kandahar earn top marks for blood donation
    Mirwais hospital in Kandahara is the reference health facility for conflict-affected southern Afghanistan, covering provinces such as Kandahar and Helmand. But its operations are often at risk because of a shortage of blood. The ICRC's Abdul Kabir reports.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan)
    Feature Includes Photo

    8-5-2008
    Uganda: an HIV-clouded pregnancy – and yet, a smile
    Margret Achieng is HIV-positive and about to deliver. But, thanks to a new programme put in place with the support of the ICRC, her baby should not be infected. Iolanda Jaquemet reports from Northern Uganda.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Uganda)
    Feature Includes Photo

    30-4-2008
    Sri Lanka: ICRC flight provides lifeline to Jaffna
    The ICRC has been operating a weekly charter flight between Colombo and the Jaffna peninsula since the closure of the main A9 highway in 2006. The flight has become a lifeline to patients needing specialized surgery, medical diagnosis or treatment not available on the peninsula.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Sri Lanka)
    Feature

    25-3-2008
    Zimbabwe: the long road to giving birth
    Mona-Lisa was born in good health after her mother trekked over 15 kilometres at nine months pregnant to get to the nearest hospital. The ICRC is supporting 16 health structures in three rural districts to help fill some of the more troubling gaps in Zimbabwe's ailing healthcare system. Robin Waudo reports.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Zimbabwe)
    Feature Includes Photo

    31-10-2007
    Afghanistan: on the frontline of health care
    Sharifa Seddiqi is a most unusual woman. Not only is she the sole female surgeon in Afghanistan's war-ravaged southern province of Kandahar, she also runs Mirwais hospital in Kandahar, the main hospital in the region.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan)
    Feature

    1-10-2007
    Uganda: promoting community health in Gulu
    Labworomor health centre in Gulu district has made a remarkable difference in the lives of thousands of local residents and internally displaced people. However, the small four-roomed building that houses the clinic has not been spared by the 20-year conflict that has ravaged northern Uganda. Journalist Denis Ocwich reports on the ICRC's comprehensive effort to rehabilitate 13 dilapidated health centres in the region.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Uganda)
    Feature Includes Photo

    14-9-2007
    Chad: young girl's story offers a lesson in survival
    Mahassine is a 13-year-old blind girl. She recently had a leg amputated after being hit by a bullet during an attack on her village. Against all odds, she managed to get on with her life. Yvonne Jansen, the ICRC orthopaedist who took care of her, recalls her courage and unrelenting will to overcome her traumatic experience.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Chad)
    Feature Includes Photo

    10-9-2007
    Southern Sudan: twice a survivor of war
    Although the conflict between the southern and the northern regions of Sudan ended in 2005, many of its victims are still striving to rebuild their lives. Mayon Deng, 42, joined the Sudanese army in 1984 and was dismissed in 1996 when he lost his left leg in combat. In November 2006, an attack in Malakal resulted in the amputation of his remaining leg. The ICRC's communication delegate in Juba, Robin Waudo, tells Mayon's story.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Sudan)
    Feature Includes Photo

    9-5-2007
    Zimbabwe: helping health authorities combat malaria in isolated communities
    Malaria is Zimbabwe's second biggest killer, after AIDS. The ministry of health has developed an effective strategy to combat the disease but does not always have the resources to carry it out, so the ICRC is pitching in.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Zimbabwe)
    Feature Includes Photo

    30-1-2007
    Darfur: weighing up the situation as community spirit thrives in Gereida camp
    At this time of year, the flimsy grass and tarpaulin shelters that are home to over 120,000 people in Gereida camp provide little protection from the whipping wind. At the moment however, it is not so much the weather that is troubling people in this vast sea of displaced humanity, but concern about food. The ICRC's Jessica Barry reports from the heart of the camp where kinship values are alive and well.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Sudan)
    Feature Includes Photo

    18-1-2007
    Darfur field surgical team: saving lives in the classroom
    The ICRC undertook to address the needs of weapon-wounded people in Darfur with the establishment in April 2005 of a fast-response, mobile field surgical team (FST). The ICRC's Jessica Barry recounts the story of a teaching nurse who recently had the opportunity to experience the daily travails of the FST firsthand.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Sudan)
    Feature Includes Photo

Field newsletter
    22-2-2008
    Uganda: 2008 health activities in northern districts
    Details of the ICRC's programmes, focussing on water and sanitation and other aspects of community care, in areas that have been affected by the conflict.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Uganda)
    Field newsletter Includes PDF

ICRC Publication
    26-6-2006
    First Aid in armed conflicts and other situations of violence
    A practical manual presenting the specific knowledge, skills and practices that First Aiders should have to act safely and effectively when caring for people caught up in armed conflicts and other situations of violence, such as internal disturbances and tensions.
    (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance)
    ICRC Publication Includes PDF

    31-12-2001
    Care in the Field for Victims of Weapons of War. A report from the workshop organized by the ICRC on "Pre-hospital care for war and mine wounded"
    This report is designed for health professionals who work in the area of care for people wounded by weapons, who plan such care and who train others to give it. The objectives of the report are to define clearly and justify the elements of first aid and treatment which are appropriate in any situation where there are wounded people; to ensure that health professionals know what constitutes, in the context of care in the field, the right treatment at the right time and in the right place; and to recommend priorities for moving wounded people to a surgical hospital.
    (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance)
    ICRC publicationRobin Coupland, Asa Molde, John Navein

    31-12-2001
    Humanitarian action and armed conflict: Coping with stress
    This brochure is intended for ICRC staff and humanitarian professionals working in conflict zones or other emergency situations. It describes and proposes ways of dealing with the various emotional reactions that may arise as a result of a traumatic event or from the difficulties encountered daily in the field. It contains a self-evaluation test.
    (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance)
    ICRC publicationBarthold Bierens de Haan

    31-12-1996
    War and public health : handbook on war and public health
    A manual intended for medical and other personnel responsible for humanitarian activities in armed conflicts. It covers the following topics: setting up a health-care system that meets the essential needs of war victims, particularly of displaced persons; public health tools most frequently used for evaluation, establishment of priorities, analysis of possible activities and their follow-up; protecting war victims and aspects of humanitarian law related to health; and lastly, ethical problems.
    (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance)
    ICRC publication

International Review of the Red Cross
Interview
    19-11-2008
    Gaza: responding to urgent medical needs of choked-off Strip
    As a result of the closure imposed on the Gaza Strip since 5 November, medical facilities are once more running out of essential supplies. This has dire consequences for the health of the Palestinian population. Katharina Ritz, the ICRC's head of mission for the occupied Palestinian territories, talks about the humanitarian situation and the organization's efforts to respond to the most urgent needs.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Middle East and North Africa\Palestine)
    Interview Includes Photo

    29-10-2008
    Iraq: urgent need to safeguard life-saving medical action
    Dr Chris Giannou is a senior ICRC surgeon and has just arrived back from Iraq, where he has been running a seminar on war surgery. He spoke to us about the challenges facing both victims and medical staff and explains why training medical staff will remain a priority, along with support to emergency services and the renovation of health infrastructure.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Middle East and North Africa\Iraq)
    Interview Includes Photo

    28-8-2008
    Georgia: getting medical care to isolated people in and around Gori
    The ICRC is actively working throughout Georgia to meet the needs of tens of thousands of people displaced or isolated by the armed conflict. Most recently, a mobile health clinic was set up and sent out to remote villages around the Georgian town of Gori and treated over 80 primarily elderly patients. Interview with an ICRC surgeon, Marco Baldan, who has just returned from Georgia.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Eastern Europe and Central Asia\Georgia)
    Interview Includes Photo

    27-8-2007
    Supporting Mirwais hospital in southern Afghanistan
    The ICRC's head of delegation in Afghanistan, Reto Stocker, talks about the ICRC's ongoing assistance for surgical services at Mirwais hospital in Kandahar and explains why the organization has upgraded its support to include the entire hospital.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan)
    Interview Includes Photo

Job opportunity
Operational update
    6-11-2008
    Georgia / Russian Federation: a difficult winter ahead
    Three months since war broke out between Russia and Georgia, thousands of people face a difficult winter. The ICRC has been helping the most vulnerable including the displaced, dispersed families and the elderly.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Eastern Europe and Central Asia\Georgia)
    Operational update Includes Photo

Photo Collection
    16-9-2008
    Somalia: bringing health and hope to a beleaguered people
    The ICRC has extended its support to 32 Somali Red Crescent clinics in central and southern Somalia, which have treated over 140,000 patients and provided more than 60,000 vaccinations since January 2008. The organization also continues to support the two surgical referral hospitals in Mogadishu, Medina and Keysaney.
    (Info resources\Photos\Africa)
    Photo Collection Includes Photo

    27-3-2008
    Zimbabwe: providing vital drugs and safe water to rural health centres
    Zimbabweans are facing extremely hard economic times resulting in the highest inflation rate in the world, a situation which is putting added pressure on the country's already weakened healthcare system. The ICRC is supporting 16 rural health structures in three districts.
    (Info resources\Photos\Africa)
    Photo Collection Includes Photo

Press article
    2-1-2008
    Haunted guests: Iraqis seek refuge with their neighbours
    In the largest population movement in the Middle East since 1948, a huge influx of Iraqis is putting pressure on services in Jordan and Syria. How are their Red Crescent Societies responding to the needs? Article published in the Red Cross Red Crescent Magazine, No 3, 2007
    (The ICRC worldwide\Middle East and North Africa\Iraq)
    Press article Includes Photo

Report
    15-11-2006
    Declining health services in the Palestinian territories: an ICRC report
    Since the beginning of 2006, the ICRC has repeatedly warned of the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories. An ICRC report issued today documents the tragic consequences that the interruption of essential health services has had on the Palestinian population. A key finding is that it is the poor, whose numbers are increasing because of the overall economic decline, who are predominantly affected by the current interruption of health services.
    (The ICRC worldwide\Middle East and North Africa\Palestine)
    Report Includes PDF, Photo

More in this section
    1-12-2007
    Bibliography on health services
    (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health)

    1-12-2005
    A special thought for those who are struggling with AIDS
    On World AIDS Day, ICRC staff member Médiatrice Nsekalije urges us to break down the barrier of indifference that stands between us and those who are living with HIV/AIDS.
    (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health)

    1-8-2004
    Landmine victim assistance
    Anti-personnel mines are designed to shatter lives and limbs beyond repair. If the person who steps on or touches a mine is not killed by the explosion, he or she typically undergoes multiple operations and the amputation of one or more limbs, followed by lengthy physical rehabilitation. Disabled for life, mine survivors require long-term care.
    (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health)

    28-2-2002
    A supportive programme for the humanitarian aid workers of the ICRC
    Extract from "Revue Française de Psychiatrie et de Psychologie Médicale", février 2002 - Tome VI - No 53. Article reproduced on this site with the kind permission of the publisher.
    (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health)
    B. Bierens de Haan, H. Van Beerendonk, N. Michel, J.-C. Mulli

    1-5-1998
    Emotional group debriefing of humanitarian aid workers: the experience of ICRC
    Extract from Swiss Archives of Neurology and Psychiatry, 1998;149:218-28. Article reproduced on this site with the kind permission of the publisher.
    (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health)
    Barthold Bierens de Haan

Other site
    10-9-2007
    World Global Fund
    The Global Fund was created to finance a dramatic turn-around in the fight against AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. These diseases kill over 6 million people each year, and the numbers are growing. To date, the Global Fund has committed US$ 8.4 billion in 136 countries to support aggressive interventions against all three diseases.
    (Info resources\Other sites\United Nations)
    Other site

    4-4-2005
    Center for Communication Programs of Johns Hopkins University
    The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health established CCP in 1988 to consolidate health communication programs originating in the 1970s and early 1980s and focus attention on the central role of communication in health behavior change.
    (Info resources\Other sites\Institutes and universities)
    Other site


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22-11-2008