Soon after the first cases of COVID-19 were detected in Pakistan, in March, 2020, the government shut down all non-essential services, including outpatient care for an array of diseases not requiring emergency treatment. As a result, Médecins Sans Frontières was forced to…
Evidence from past health emergencies sparked fears that COVID-19 would disrupt access to contraception, especially for women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa—but data collected in 4 countries yielded had some surprising findings.
A newborn’s cries break the expectant stillness of the delivery room. Beaming beneath her surgical mask, midwife Kimberly Moorhouse lifts the baby to the new mother’s glistening face as the sun begins to crest over the Inukjuak midwifery center in Nunavik, a remote region…
When Serbian forces bombed Sarajevo, Bosnia on May, 26, 1992, the pediatric hospital came under direct attack. Nurses scrambled to save 17 premature babies—carrying 2 or 3 apiece to the basement while bullets and shells rained down. 9 of the babies died.
Nearly 18 months into the pandemic, the tiny island nation of Tonga still enjoys an extraordinary status: zero reported COVID-19 cases. The country, population 105,000, is one of 6 Pacific Island nations that are still COVID-free, according to official numbers. As a…
Early in the pandemic, there were dire predictions about a tidal wave of COVID cases hitting sub-Saharan African, overwhelming already struggling health systems. For much of the pandemic, those terrifying predictions didn’t materialize, perplexing researchers. But a year…
The pandemic strained even the most placid of countries, but health workers in Syria, still in the grips of conflict, faced extra challenges—from daily power outages to cut-off communication, travel, and supply lines.
Raise your hand if you’ve experienced a far-reaching nasal swab at least once in the last 12 months.
The US may be one of the planet’s most well-resourced countries, but it’s clearly doing a much worse job of providing health care—particularly mental health care—than many countries.
Glancing nervously towards the clock, Brenda Epoo, an experienced midwife and perinatal service coordinator, reaches for a folded set of fresh bed sheets. With only 5 minutes before the next patient arrives, Epoo must handwash all of her instruments and change the linens on…
