Testimonies, December 2011

Robert Mungai Maina, MSF Clinical Officer, aged 37 (interviewed Dec 6, 2011) Voices from the Field - 12 Dec 2011

South Sudan

On November 28, MSF set up a temporary clinic in Doro. To date MSF has conducted 700 consultations in the temporary clinic, including 100 patients treated for malaria and more than 100 ante natal consultations. Because this is not a good sanitary environment for giving birth, a midwife will shortly join the MSF team, which also includes a doctor, a nurse, two clinical officers, a health promotion officer and other humanitarian emergency specialists. Project Update - 12 Dec 2011

Afghanistan

MSF treats victims of bomb blast in central Kunduz

Following a bomb blast in the capital of Kunduz province in northern Afghanistan on 10 December, MSF treated fourteen patients in the organization’s surgical hospital. Project Update - 12 Dec 2011

South Sudan

MSF scales up emergency response

The registered number of refugees gathering at the tiny village of Doro, as of 7th December, was 21,500 and increasing daily. Anywhere from 500 to 1,000 newcomers are registering every day.
The walk from their homelands in Blue Nile State, Sudan (north), took anywhere from one week to one month. Although the work to set up a properly organised refugee camp is under way, no family groups arriving at the gathering point at Doro have yet been allocated a plot. So the reality for most is still to find a small tree or bush under which to spread the belongings they were able to carry. Project Update - 12 Dec 2011

Neglected diseases

MSF statement in response to Gilead donation of AmBisome for visceral leishmaniasis

“This agreement is significant in that it helps address immediate treatment needs in some countries for one of the world’s most neglected diseases." Statement - 9 Dec 2011

HIV/AIDS

East African HIV programmes must wake up to visceral leishmaniasis

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), also known as ‘kala azar’, is a neglected parasitic disease spread through the bite of a sandfly. VL is endemic in 76 countries and is fatal without treatment. With new MSF data showing combination treatments give promising results, diagnosis and treatment of VL should be scaled up. Press Release - 8 Dec 2011

Refugees, IDPs and people on the move

Sixty years on, governments still failing refugees

This week, world leaders will gather in Geneva to commemorate 60 years of the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Yet it is an anniversary the world’s 15.1 million refugees have little reason to celebrate. Today, states are increasingly shutting their borders and restricting the assistance they give to refugees and people seeking asylum. Project Update - 8 Dec 2011

Meningitis

First-ever treatment guidelines released for major cause of death of people living with HIV

MSF study shows cryptococcal meningitis as leading cause of death, but access to best treatment is a major challenge Project Update - 7 Dec 2011

HIV/AIDS

At African AIDS conference, MSF calls for increased funding for HIV treatment

As Africa’s AIDS Conference convenes in Addis Ababa this Sunday, December 4, efforts to combat HIV in sub-Saharan Africa are under serious threat. Press Release - 2 Dec 2011

Access to Healthcare

The thinnest of lifelines: An interview with Dr. Unni Karunakara on MSF's response to the funding crisis at the Global Fund

In a move that could have a profound impact on patients in developing countries, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria has announced it won’t be accepting any grant applications this year to support treatment programmes because of a catastrophic drop in donor funding. Voices from the Field - 1 Dec 2011

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

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We provide medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare. Our teams are made up of tens of thousands of health professionals, logistic and administrative staff - most of them hired locally. Our actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of independence and impartiality. We are a non-profit, self-governed, member-based organisation.

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