International humanitarian aid organisationProvides emergency medical relief to those who need it most in more than 60 countries worldwideFirst in and last outTreats most vulnerableWhat is MSF?

MSF works in over 65 countries worldwide

MSF Emergency Situations War Disease Famine Displacement Natural or man-made disaster

Volunteers in the field Medical:DoctorsAnaesthetistsSurgeons Paramedical:NursesMidwivesEpidemiologistsLab techsMental health specialistsNutritionalists

Non-medical:LogisticiansFinancial controllers Water/sanitation specialists Humanitarian law specialists Administrators

Chart1

28

32

40

Non-medical staff 40%

Paramedical staff 32%

Medical staff 28%

MSF Field Volunteers - 2006

Sheet1

Medics28

Para-medics32.0

Non-Medical40

Sheet2

Sheet3

Kampungu: Kasa OccidentalDemocratic Republic of CongoEbola Outbreak Sept-Oct 2007

Ebola Virus Symptoms: fever, sickness, bleeding 90% mortality Reservoir: infected bats and monkeys Highly infectious Transmitted by contact with contaminated material No cure No vaccine

Team:

4 Doctors (1 an epidemiologist)3 Nurses3 Wat-San2 Logistic/Sans1 Field Coordinator1 Admin/Finance1 Anthropologist1 Psychologist1 Base Logistician

Context:

Typhoid/Shigella detectedEbola tested & positive22 villages 20 - 40,000 people Extremely remote locationTotal lack of facilitiesVery low level of understanding

WAT SAN ResponsibilitiesIsolation Zone Set Up and operationDisposal of bodiesDisposal of contaminated/medical materialDisinfection of propertiesTraining of local staffSuppression of Typhoid

*The purpose of this presentation is to provide a framework from which you can talk about your own experiences with MSF. Please think of it as a picknmix from which you can take the information you need and add your own slides and pictures. We feel peoples individual stories are the most powerful fundraising/recruitment tool.

Do make sure you take plenty of information leaflets and hand them out to those who are interested.

*MSF is a leading non-governmental international voluntary organisation for emergency medical aid.

It provides independent medical relief to victims in distress in over 70 countries around the world.

MSF has a reputation for being the first amongst aid organisations to respond to emergency situations. It is also often the last to leave places that become forgotten by other agencies.

We ensure that aid targets the most vulnerable part of the population and focus on specific groups that are likely to fall outside mainstream relief efforts for example internally displaced people, ethnic minorities, women, street-children, or prisoners.

*1998, Rep of Congo MSF integrated treatment for survivors of rape and sexual assault into its emergency programme.

1999, Kosovo crisis During the NATO bombing of Serbia, MSF provided humanitarian assistance to displaced civilians in Kosovo, and in refugee camps in Albania, Macedonia and Montenegro, as well as to civilians in Serbia.

2000, Civil war in Sierra Leone Since the 1990s, West Africa has faced crisis after crisis. MSF treated victims of the countrys brutal civil war.

2002, Famine in Angola Here, MSF ran the largest operation in its history, with 200 international volunteers and more than 2,000 local staff working throughout the country.

2003, Heavy fighting in Liberia MSF remained in Monrovia to treat victims during fierce fighting between government and rebel troops in the summer of 2003.

2004, Afghanistan / Iraq withdrawals MSF started working in Afghanistan in 1980. Following 9/11, expatriates were forced to evacuate but programmes continued and teams soon returned. However, NGOs became increasingly seen as part of the coalition military machine and this blurring of the line between military and humanitarian work has caused significant confusion and put aid workers at risk.

5 MSF workers were murdered in Afghanistan in June 2004 a killing claimed by the Taliban. Although government officials presented MSF with credible evidence that local commanders conducted the attack, they neither detained them nor publicly called for their arrest. MSF felt that the lack of government response to the killings represented a failure of responsibility and an inadequate commitment to the safety of aid workers on its soil and so withdrew completely from the country in July 2004.

In November 2004, MSF also withdrew from Iraq, since the risks for expatriate and national staff were found to be too high.

2004, Emergency in Darfur MSF set up feeding centres, clinics and vaccination campaigns in western Sudan and Chad, where hundreds of thousands of people have fled extreme violence in the Darfur region.

2004/5, Asian Tsunami Crisis MSF acted quickly to establish clinics and distribute medical supplies to the most isolated and damaged communities in Sri Lanka and Aceh, Indonesia. *Types of emergency situations MSF deals with are: War, disease, famine, displacement, natural or man-made disaster.*MSF is a voluntary organisation. Each year, about 2,500 doctors, nurses, logistics specialists and engineers from around the world leave on field assignments. Of these, around 165 were UK volunteers in 2004 (of which 32% were on their first mission). In 2005, we hope to send up to 250 volunteers to the field. *Blurring of the lines between humanitarian aid relief and the military forces is becoming an increasing problem for MSF, and other aid organisations. This is occurring as a result of co-option by the military, as they take on the camouflage of civilian aid to protect themselves and gain information. This has serious consequences for MSFs commitment to independence. It has put aid organisations at great risk.

MSFs only protection is through the communities in which we work. We are trying even harder to educate them about our complete independence from anyones army.***Types of emergency situations MSF deals with are: War, disease, famine, displacement, natural or man-made disaster.*******