The AUB volunteers started providing health services to refugees in the Beirut area on July
19th, 2006. The services include medical assessments, provision of medications, and more
recently vaccination. This is accomplished by conducting visits to displacement centers. In
the coming weeks, we will also be supporting existing clinics and NGOs with medical
volunteers, and providing medical care to refugees in our OPD clinics.
During the past week we visited several schools in the area. Through our visits, we found
that there was some overlap of services provided by our group and other organizations. As
the week progressed we redefined our strategy and coordinated with other organizations
providing medical and social services to the refugee population. As of this week, we will be
focusing on providing health services to 10 schools in the area in coordination with the NGOs
who are managing the social services there.
In addition to medical services, we are coordinating with faculty members and students from
the Faculty of Health Sciences and Agricultural and Food Sciences who are planning and
providing public health and nutritional services at the same schools.
Volunteers
Volunteers are dispatched to the displacement centers at 4 pm daily. They visit 2 . 3 schools
daily in teams of up to 10 individuals. Under the direction of a Team Leader, the team
members are assigned specific roles which include triage, pharmacy management, medical
care provision, record keeping etc. Teams include medical students, residents, attending
physicians, nurses, and pharmacists.
We have compiled a list of people interested in volunteering with the relief effort. Thus far
176 people have expressed interest in supporting the relief effort. These include FM faculty
members (18), residents (20), medical students (23), pre-med students (2), and nurses (17), in
addition to psychologists, pharmacists, faculty and students from other faculties.
Medical Conditions
The medical conditions treated include diabetes, hypertension, heart failure, musculoskeletal
disorders, threatened abortion, viral infections, skin rashes, diarrhea in infants. Patients are
also being seen for normal pregnancy and refills of chronic medications
Medications
More than 3000 medication samples were donated to the group by physicians, and drug
companies. In addition to these medications, the Red Cross is providing each team of
physicians with a box of basic medications for their daily visits. If the medication needed by
a patient is not immediately available with the volunteer team, a prescription is written and
the patient is referred to one of the YMCA dispensaries. The contact person at each school is
given a list of the drug dispensaries in the area with their telephone numbers and opening
hours to facilitate this process.
Population
During the first week of our activities, we visited a total of 14 displacement centers. Below is
a list of the centers and the approximate number of people in each one. Numbers change
every day and we are adding or removing schools based on feedback from other NGOs with
whom we are cooperating
Vaccines
We consulted World Health Organization (WHO) regarding vaccination recommendations
for our refugees. Given the epidemiology of infectious disease in Lebanon and the current
emergency conditions, they recommended the following:
- Oral Polio Vaccine for children under 5 years of age
- Measles vaccine for children 6 months - 12 years of age
Based on these recommendations we obtained 700 doses of OPV and 300 doses of Measles
vaccine from the Ministry of Health. We began administering vaccines to children on
Monday July 24th. So far, we have vaccinated 89 children. Seventy five percent of them
have received both vaccines, and 25% have only received OPV.
Public Health and sanitation
The Public Health team has developed the required kits and completed a survey of the
conditions of the schools as well as completed more than 6 training sessions for volunteers
who will help in educating and implementing hygiene preservation at those refugee centers.
