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 Home > ICRC Activities > Assistance > Health News Somalia: ICRC sends urgently needed medical supplies to Kismayo 5-10-2009 News release 1-10-2009 News release 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.  Key document1-3-2000 Health services: introductionThe 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 Event1-1-2009 The HELP course: a multicultural and multidisciplinary learning experience2009-Various places (Info resources\Events) Event Feature4-9-2009 Afghanistan: polluted water triggers health alert in Kandahar provinceWhen several members of one family in the Kajur area of Kandahar province died recently, and over 100 others in the same village fell sick with watery diarrhoea, alarm bells started ringing. On 22 August alone, nearly 40 patients were taken to Mirwais hospital in Kandahar for treatment. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan) Feature 24-8-2009 Storytellers bring a touch of magic to health promotion in Afghanistan Ensuring that families know about simple basic health care is an important part of the ICRC's water and habitat programme in Afghanistan. Jessica Barry joined a team of hygiene promoters on their daily round. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan) Feature Includes Photo 18-8-2009 Mirwais hospital: ICRC staff manage to work in dire circumstances Journalist Nima Elbagir and cameraman Jake Simkin visited the ICRC-supported Mirwais hospital in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Here, they share their impressions of the humanitarian situation and of the ICRC and its work in the hospital. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan) Feature Includes Photo 12-6-2009 Kenya: the ABCs of dealing with trauma In Kenya road traffic accidents, armed violence and other incidents maim and kill numerous people each year. For the injured, medical care is not always within easy reach. The ICRC recently organized a workshop in Nairobi to help doctors brush up on their skills in treating trauma patients. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Kenya) Feature Includes Photo 18-5-2009 Pakistan: Alina learns to walk againWar in north-west Pakistan is causing more and more casualties. On a recent filming trip to the region, the ICRC's Jan Powell met 10-year-old Alina, who was badly injured in a bomb explosion and is now being treated in the ICRC's field hospital in Peshawar. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan) Feature Includes Photo 8-4-2009 Afghanistan: assistance to the war-woundedIn 1979, following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the ICRC started providing medical and surgical assistance in Pakistan to Afghans wounded in the fighting. Based in Kabul since 1987, the ICRC has consistently sought to provide neutral, independent support to health structures and staff across Afghanistan, and to care for conflict victims. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Afghanistan) Feature Includes Photo 23-12-2008 Zimbabwe: going from door to door in the fight against choleraOver 1,000 people have reportedly succumbed to cholera in Zimbabwe, while some 18,500 more are said to have contracted the illness. The ICRC is working with the health ministry to contain the epidemic. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Zimbabwe) Feature Includes Photo 8-12-2008 Democratic Republic of the Congo: Charlotte’s smile Charlotte Tabaro is a psycho-social worker in one of the two centres that the Red Cross Society of the DRC has set up in the displaced persons’ camps at Kibati, near Goma. Charlotte has been trained by the ICRC to care for victims of the conflict, to listen as they tell of their suffering and to provide counselling. The counselling centres are known in French as “maisons d’écoute” – literally, “listening houses”. Here, suffering meets compassion and hope. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Congo-Kinshasa) Feature Includes Photo 26-11-2008 Zimbabwe: coping with the cholera outbreakThe ICRC-supported Budiriro Polyclinic in one of Harare's densely-populated suburbs is a hive of activity. The entrance is crowded with people, some lined up at the gate waiting their turn to enter. In recent weeks, Budiriro has been converted into a “Cholera Treatment Unit” to help deal with the epidemic. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Zimbabwe) Feature 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 21-10-2008 Philippines: caring for the sick and woundedSince 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 boxKakha 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 conflictWhen 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 escapeLife 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 lifelineThe 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 donationMirwais 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 smileMargret 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 25-3-2008 Zimbabwe: the long road to giving birthMona-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 1-10-2007 Uganda: promoting community health in GuluLabworomor 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 Field newsletter1-9-2009 Pakistan: response to NWFP humanitarian crisisFighting started in April, bringing the number of displaced persons in North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) to around 2 million. The ICRC and the Pakistan Red Crescent Society are working together to look after IDPs and others affected by conflict in the region. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan) Field newsletter Includes PDF 31-3-2009 Newsletter: ICRC hospital in PeshawarICRC medical assistance in Pakistan dates back to 1981 when the organization set up two hospitals to treat victims of the Afghan war. Over the years, the assistance has been expanded to provide treatment to ever greater numbers of people wounded in the Afghan and Pakistani conflicts. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan) Field newsletter Includes PDF 22-2-2008 Uganda: 2008 health activities in northern districtsDetails 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 film20-3-2009 Kyrgyzstan: TB behind barsIn parts of Central Asia, rates of tuberculosis have reached record levels. Rates are particularly high in prisons where the disease spreads easily. Worse still, new strains are emerging which do not respond to normal treatment. In some cases, a spell in prison could mean a death sentence. But in Kyrgyzstan, a new treatment programme is giving hope to prisoners infected with the deadly, drug-resistant forms of TB. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\From the field) ICRC film Includes Video 27-2-2009 Safe delivery: traditional birth attendants in Liberia (full version) As Liberia recovers from civil war, health workers and midwives are in short supply. When village women give birth, they are usually helped by a traditional birth attendant from their own community. This film tells the story of a training programme, developed by the Liberian Ministry of Health and the ICRC, to improve the skills of traditional birth attendants. When the participants complete the course, they know how to help with normal deliveries and when to send women with problems to the nearest health centre. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Assistance) ICRC film Includes Video 1-1-2009 TV spot: Keep health workers safe!When people are wounded or fall sick during armed conflict and internal violence, health workers are there to help, but they don't take sides. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Protection) ICRC film Includes Video ICRC Publication26-1-2009 HIV/AIDS field guide: a planning and practice guide to integrating HIV/AIDS into the ICRC's health workThis field guide is designed to assist in responding to HIV/AIDS as an integral part of health activities. It provides guidance and decision making tools to help decide what to do amongst specific populations in a given context, and guidance on how to integrate HIV/AIDS into core health activities. (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance) ICRC Publication Includes PDF 26-6-2006 First Aid in armed conflicts and other situations of violenceA 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 publication 31-12-2001 Humanitarian action and armed conflict: Coping with stressThis 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 publication 31-12-1996 War and public health : handbook on war and public healthA 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 Interview16-11-2009 Health care: one of the first casualties of warWhen armed conflict breaks out, hospitals and health workers are sometimes attacked, ambulances can be prevented from reaching the wounded and a lack of basic services, like water and electricity, can bring surgical procedures grinding to a halt. The ICRC’s chief war surgeon, Marco Baldan, explains why health care must be better respected and protected in situations of armed violence. (ICRC Activities\Assistance\Health) Interview Includes Photo 29-10-2009 Pakistan: ICRC supports medical facilities in WaziristanThe ICRC has no direct access to Waziristan or to the adjacent areas to which most of the population has fled. However, the organization is helping thousands of victims of the fighting through its indirect assistance to eight medical facilities inside Waziristan. An interview with the health delegate who has been running this support programme, Rosanna Magoga. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Pakistan) Interview Includes Photo 31-3-2009 Sri Lanka: ever more sick and wounded evacuated from conflict area to hospitalSince 10 February the ICRC has evacuated thousands of people from conflict-weary northern Sri Lanka to Trincomalee district for medical treatment. Martin Hermann, an ICRC surgeon, speaks about the evacuated patients and his work. (The ICRC worldwide\Asia and the Pacific\Sri Lanka) Interview Includes Photo 3-3-2009 Greater need, fewer resources: ensuring adequate health care for women during armed conflictIn areas ravaged by conflict, women’s specific health needs are often neglected and ignored. But women are particularly at risk when the bombs are falling. On the occasion of International Women's Day, Nadine Puechguirbal, the ICRC's women and war adviser, explains the challenges that women face in war and why they need better access to health care. (Focus\Women and war) Interview Includes Photo 2-3-2009 Sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: prevention and victim assistanceArmed violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially in the provinces of North and South Kivu, includes widespread rape and countless other forms of sexual violence. Mirella Papinutto, head of the ICRC's psycho-social programmes in the country, talks about the activities conducted by the ICRC to prevent such violence and assist the victims. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Congo-Kinshasa) Interview Includes Photo 30-12-2008 Somalia: surgeons save lives far from homeMohammed and Amin are surgeons. For 14 months, they left their well-equipped hospital back home to work at Keysaney and Medina Hospitals in Mogadishu. During a brief stop in Geneva on the way home, they took time out to talk about surgery, Somalia … and football. (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Somalia) Interview 19-11-2008 Gaza: responding to urgent medical needs of choked-off StripAs 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 actionDr 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 Job opportunity2-9-2009 Profession: doctor (public health)In the field (About the ICRC\Human resources\Skills always in demand) Job opportunity Includes Photo Photo Collection26-6-2009 Pakistan: civilians struggle as fighting continues around them Some 2.5 million people have fled the fighting in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan since early May. They are staying with host families or in camps outside areas directly affected by the fighting, often with extremely limited access to clean water, electricity, medical care and communications. (Info resources\Photos\Asia and the Pacific) Photo Collection Includes Photo 19-2-2009 Promoting women’s health worldwide The ICRC cares for all the victims of conflict but it adapts this care to meet their needs. Specific services for women affected by conflict include support for rape victims, medical care for women in places of detention, antenatal and postnatal care for mothers and babies, the provision of hygiene requisites/training and rehabilitation for female mine victims. (Info resources\Photos) Photo Collection Includes Photo 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 Video Collection27-2-2009 Counselling rape victimes in Democratic Republic of the Congo Charlotte Tabaro is a psycho-social worker for the Red Cross in DRC. By offering a listening ear to victims of sexual violence, she helps them to share their experiences and deal with the pain of the traumatic events they have gone through. (Info resources\Video) Video Collection Includes Video 15-1-2009 ICRC work round the clock in Shifa Hospital, Gaza City In Shifa Hospital, Gaza City, the main referral hospital in the Gaza strip, large numbers of severely injured patients are being treated round the clock. The ICRC medical staff at the hospital say that most of the casualties are civilians, many of them children. The shortage of intensive care beds for the most seriously injured puts lives further at risk. (Info resources\Video) Video Collection Includes Video More in this section1-12-2005 A special thought for those who are struggling with AIDSOn 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) 28-2-2002 A supportive programme for the humanitarian aid workers of the ICRCExtract 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) 1-5-1998 Emotional group debriefing of humanitarian aid workers: the experience of ICRCExtract 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) Other site10-9-2007 World Global FundThe 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 UniversityThe 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  |
