WHOs Humanitarian Response in Countries Hosting Syrian Refugees 3RP - PDF document

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 WHO’s Humanitarian Response in Countries Hosting Syrian Refugees 3RP Countries Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey 1 | Background: Key Humanitarian Issues  February 2015 - total registered Syrian refugees 3.8 million  Large numbers of unregistered refugees  Expected to reach 4.27 million by the end of 2015  < 20% of refugees in camps, remainder informal settlements/host communities  Mostly substandard shelter especially out of camps (ITSs, overcrowding, makeshift or unfinished buildings), limited access to safe water & adequate sanitation  Significant issues:  Political turmoil in host countries, long term crisis & Refugee-Host population: Egypt 0.2%, Iraq displacement, economic hardships, unemployment 0.7% Turkey 2%, Jordan 10%, Lebanon 30%  Dwindling host government resources, limited employment opportunities, exploitation, food Characteristics: M/F = 49:51; 18% < 5 years, security 34% 5-17 years, 45% 18-59 years, & 3% 60+  Tensions between refugees and host communities 2 | 1

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Background: Key Health Issues • Host governments granted access to public sector health services as for nationals (even nationals pay out-of-pocket for some health services) but health systems are becoming significantly stretched by additional needs • Health needs of Syrian refugees are multiple, including: – Access to quality services at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels, including referral services and emergency care – Prevention and management of communicable disease threats including immunization – Maternal, newborn and child health care / reproductive health / SGBV – Non-communicable diseases including medications – Trauma care – Services for the disabled – Mental health and psychosocial support 3 | WHO’s Presence/Capacity in 3RP Countries • Country offices with emergency staff in all 5 countries with significant refugee burden • Sub-national offices in turkey (Gaziantep) and Iraq (Erbil) specifically supporting response to refugee crisis • Emergency support team based in Jordan (Amman) supporting all 5 countries 4 | 2

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Key Health Sector Partners  MoHs, local health authorities and other Line Ministries  National Disaster Management Organizations  UN Agencies – UNICEF, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNRWA, UNDP  IOM  National Red Cross / Crescent Societies  INGOS – DRC, HI, IMC, SCI, IRC, Mercy Corps, Medair ++  National NGOs 5 | Health Sector Actions in 2014  Improved access to quality health services (primary, secondary and tertiary)  Strengthened PHC services including:  Immunization (routine & campaigns for polio & measles)  Reproductive Health (incl. emergency obstetric care)  Management of NCDs & MH support  Essential medicines and supplies  Strengthened referral systems  Established/expanded EWARS & disease surveillance  Monitored water quality (camps / host communities)  Developed capacity of health workers and systems  Raised health awareness (refugees & hosts)  Established community health volunteer teams 6 | 3

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Specific Achievements Attributable to WHO Leadership and Coordination:  In 2014 WHO took on the lead / co-lead of the HSWGs in the five countries Information  Generating and disseminating health information (SitReps, Bulletins, Donor Snapshots, Health Impact Analysis)  Supporting health assessments (20 assessments in 5 countries)  Strengthening communicable disease and EWARS (early warning, alert and response system) 7 | Specific Achievements Attributable to WHO Technical Support  Planning & implementation of immunisation campaigns against polio and measles  27 million children immunized across the Region  Technical support to MoHs and other partners on strategy / policy for priority public health issues  Building capacity of partners on detection & rapid response to outbreaks & public health threats  3,500 trained on EWARS & disease surveillance  Developing capacity of front line health workers  2,000 trained in a range of disciplines  Developing & disseminating technical guidelines  Supporting cutting edge Mental Health programmes  Supporting improvement of water quality in camps  Supporting vector control in camps & communities 8 | 4

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Specific Achievements Attributable to WHO Health Service Provision (POLR)  Improved access to quality preventive and curative health services  Including 60 staff & 6 clinics within camps in Iraq  Strengthened capacity of nearly 300 health facilities through providing equipment  Supported provision of quality and equitable secondary & tertiary care services  2,400 services supported in Egypt and Jordan  Supported referral services  Provided medicine and medical equipment for services for hundreds of thousands of Syrians and host communities  Provided support to refugees with disabilities 9 | Health Sector Response Plan for 2015 Major planned interventions for the health sector under 3RP  Supporting equitable and sustainable access to and coverage of quality health care services (primary and essential secondary/tertiary)  Strengthening existing national health systems with a focus on key components (NCDs, MH, MNCH / RH, SGBV & Emergency preparedness)  Prevention and control of communicable diseases including timely detection and response to outbreaks  Increasing immunization coverage among under-fives  Supporting access to mental health and psychosocial services  Monitoring health indicators and achievements through an improved health information system  Enhancing the community health approach  Effectively coordinating the inputs of health sector partners 10 | 5

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Specific Challenges Related to Operations and Programming Refugees  Increasing numbers of refugees in camps and in impacted communities  High mobility of Syrian population inside and cross border Funding  Shortage of funds  Bridging humanitarian activities to more sustainable development interventions in health requires strong advocacy at regional level in order to secure donor funding Health Services / Systems  Strained / overwhelmed health systems  Limited health system capacity and resilience  Targeting / reaching the most vulnerable population groups for health services  Fragmented health information systems Security  Highly volatile security situation and unstable socio-political context in some host countries 11 | Funding Requirements for 2015 Gap (%) – Funding Requirements Required Received Carry-over for 2015 (US$) amount amount funds Range in 3RP Countries 369 million Health Cluster / Sector 22.7 million Not 92 – 100% (93.9%) (261m for refugees + 108m for available resilience) WHO 33.6 million 0 1.6 million 63 – 100% (95.1%) Current/recent donors (under the RRP6)  Canada, China, EU, Kuwait, Norway, Republic of Korea, UK, and USA  CERF (UNOCHA) 12 | 6

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Consequences of Funding Failures  Reduced access for refugees and affected host communities to health services at all levels  Reduction of immunization coverage  Increased risk of communicable disease outbreaks  Further movement of refugee to new areas where they feel that health services can be accessed  Social tension among refugees and with host communities  Economic consequences and burdens on the health system and other government services further straining limited resources  All above have the potential to increase morbidity and mortality among refugee populations and host communities 13 | Key Interventions and Targets  Responding to the immediate health needs of refugees with emphasis on life-saving activities through PHC  Implementing a comprehensive PHC package including provision of medications for both refugees and impacted communities  Strengthening communicable diseases surveillance, detection and response, including immunization  Optimizing specialized secondary and tertiary health care & strengthening the referral mechanism  Strengthening capacity of health workers and the national health system and promoting sustainable services  Strengthening Health Information Systems  Strengthening coordination and streamlining of decision making in partnership with health authorities and other actors  Supporting MoH and other health partners in strengthening the health service delivery capacity at the community level for refugees and host populations  Gender and age specific Behaviour Change Communication with broader engagement of communities  Targeting the most vulnerable populations and special groups 14 | 7

World Health Organization 24 February, 2015 Thank You 15 | 8