A framework for community health worker optimisation in conflict settings: prerequisites and possibilities from Northwest Syria
The world will face a human resource gap of 10 million health workers in 2030. Community health workers (CHWs) can contribute to mitigating this workforce gap while improving equitable access to care and health outcomes. However, questions on how to best implement and optimise CHW programmes, especially across varied contexts, remain. As each context has its […]
Medical education system (re)building in a fragile setting: Northwest Syria as a case study
Syria has witnessed more than a decade of armed conflict through which healthcare workers and facilities have not only been affected, but targeted. Amidst this targeting of healthcare workers, subsequent displacement, and ‘weaponization’ of healthcare, the medical education and health professional training (MEHPT) of those that remain has split into at least two distinctive contexts: […]
Key Considerations: Humanitarian Response to the Kahramanmaraş Earthquake in Syria
On 6 February 2023, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale brought destruction to southern Türkiye and northern Syria. The official death toll exceeded 50,000, with more than 7,000 fatalities occurring in Syria.1 An estimated 12 million people were affected by the earthquake in total.2 While international aid from the UN […]
Health system strengthening in conflict settings: a case study of a hybrid health system in northwest Syria between 2013-2021
A typical health response in settings affected by armed conflict is usually initiated by local responders well before the international humanitarian response sets in. Humanitarian health interventions, in these settings, are aimed at saving lives and responding to increased health needs. However, these interventions often establish a parallel arbitrary health system which can present significant […]
Inequitable access to aid after the devastating earthquake in Syria
On Feb 6, 2023, a 7·8 magnitude earthquake struck Syria and Türkiye, resulting in the worst natural disaster the region has experienced in the past century. As of March 1, the death toll in both countries has surpassed 51 000 people,and this number is expected to rise further. The Syrian Assistance Coordination Unit has reported that […]
The catastrophic response to the earthquake in Syria: the need for corrective actions and accountability
The Feb 6, 2023 earthquake has devastated areas in northwest Syria controlled by the Türkiye-backed Syrian National Army and extremist Hayat Tahrir Sham, and respectively run by their civilian affiliates, the Syrian Interim Government (SIG) and the Syrian Salvation Government. The earthquake brought further suffering to 4·5 million people, of whom 2·8 million or 62% […]
An analysis of humanitarian and health aid alignment over a decade (2011–2019) of the Syrian conflict
The 11 years of the devastating conflict in Syria resulted in more than 874,000 deaths, and in more than thirteen million refugees and internally displaced people (UNHCR, Syrian refugee crisis: aid, statistics and news, USA for UNHCR, Washington, 2020; Alhiraki et al. in BMJ Glob Health 7:e008624, 2022). The health system was severely affected and […]
Central desks as an approach for health governance in conflict settings – case studies from northwest Syria
The conflict in Syria affected severely the health sector; health infrastructure was damaged, the Damascus ministry of health withdrew from opposition held areas, health workers fled the country, and there has been always a shortage of funding and medical supplies. To address these needs, Syrian NGOs, INGOs, donors, and UN Agencies have been providing health […]
The health of internally displaced people in Syria: are current systems fit for purpose?
Introduction: Syria has the largest number of internally displaced people (IDPs) globally with 6.7 million forced from their homes since the uprising erupted in 2011. Most face multiple intersecting vulnerabilities with adverse health impacts. We explore the key health concerns among IDPs, how the various health systems in Syria have responded to the dynamic health […]
Cross-border strategies for access to healthcare in violent conflict – A scoping review
The geographical reconfiguration of healthcare systems in times of violent conflict is increasingly being recognised in academic literature. This includes conflict-induced, cross-border travel for medical treatment. Yet the conceptual approach to this healthcare-seeking behaviour, by a population here referred to as cross-border population, remains poorly understood. This scoping review identifies academic literature on cross-border populations […]