WHO in Syria
Giving children with a disability in Syria new hope
17 December 2019, Damascus, Syria – In the crowded reception area of the Disability and Physical Rehabilitation Centre in Damascus, 13-year old Ali from Ar-Raqqa governorate waits for his name to be called. His father Jaseem waits patiently with him, optimistic that his son will receive the best possible treatment. Ali was injured during a...
Concerted efforts to eradicate AIDS in the Syrian Arab Republic
8 December 2019, Damascus — On the occasion of World AIDS Day (1 December) and under the slogan ”My health needs under one roof; integrating HIV health services,” WHO, in cooperation with the Syrian Ministry of Health, called for more concerted action to prevent HIV and highlighted global obligations to provide people living with HIV the...
WHO gravely concerned about humanitarian situation in northeast Syria
13 October, Cairo, Egypt — WHO is gravely concerned about the humanitarian health situation in northeast Syria, where up to 200,000 people have been displaced as a result of increased military operations since 9 October, and almost 1.5 million people are in need of health aid. Many of those affected by the recent hostilities have already...
WHO statement on mortality in Al Hol camp, Syria
22 September 2019 –The World Health Organization (WHO) has serious concerns over recent reporting of an increase in the number of child deaths in Al Hol camp. Such reporting has provided an inaccurate analysis on under-5 mortality, misrepresented some of the data, and overstated the gravity of the health situation in the camp. While health needs in...
Vital contributions from Japan enable WHO support for health care services for Syrian children
12 September 2019 – The World Health Organization (WHO) extends its gratitude to the People of Japan for the generous donation of US$ 5.2 million allocated to equipping the paediatric hospital in the Aleppo governorate and enabling vulnerable families in north, north-west and north-east Syria to have access to proper medical health care services for...
Nurses who made a difference
The Head Nurse at Al-Hikmah nongovernmental hospital in Al-Hasakeh governorate in north-east Syria. Photo: WHO/Syria 2019 20 August 2019 – 32-year-old Bayan is the head nurse at Al-Hikmah hospital in Al-Hasakeh governorate. She has spent the past 8 years in critical care, looking after emergency, trauma and intensive care patients. “Nursing is immensely...
Elizabeth Hoff: Seven years of tireless work in war-torn Syria
14 July 2019 – When Elizabeth Hoff was appointed as WHO Representative in Syria in 2012, she didn’t expect that she would spend the next several years leading the emergency health response in what has been described as the world’s largest and most complex humanitarian emergency. After seven years of working in the war-ravaged country, the next...
WHO supports the evacuation of a mental health patient from Al-Hol camp
1 July 2019 – WHO has successfully evacuated a 60-year-old female patient with a mental disorder from Al Hol camp in north-east Syria to a WHO-supported psychiatric hospital in...
Advancing paediatric care in Syria
Three-month old Safaa after her surgery, made possible with the support of the Bambino Gesú Hospital 17 June 2019, Damascus, Syria – With support from WHO, a team of senior medical specialists from the Bambino Gesú hospital in Rome (the largest paediatric hospital in Italy) has just concluded a one-week visit to Syria to work with their...
WHO condemns attacks on 3 health facilities in north-west Syria
5 April 2019 – The World Health Organization (WHO) strongly condemns the consecutive reported attacks on 3 health facilities in north-west Syria on 28 and 30 April. The attacks resulted in damage to infrastructure, putting them out of service. Of the 3 facilities attacked, 2 were hospitals located in northern Hama providing life-saving medical...