At Direct Relief, May is for moms. Throughout the month, we will regularly honor mothers around the world who inspire us. Today’s story comes from Dr. Mark Scoffield, CEO of American Medical Overseas Relief.

Mursal is a mother in Afghanistan who is also a neonatal nurse for American Medical Overseas Relief (AMOR), a Direct Relief partner. While this may not seem all that unusual, it is in Afghanistan – a country where women have largely been excluded from education, and even killed for attempting to seek one.

Through the help of grants provided by Direct Relief to support the work of Haiti Hospital Appeal, the lives of thousands of mothers and babies have been saved.

The UK-based charity provides high-quality maternity care to women in northern Haiti as part of their overall mission to improve health care in Haiti.

In August 2012, humanitarian organization, Tiyatien Health, in partnership with Direct Relief, began surveying households in Konobo District in rural Liberia to understand the regional incidence of pneumonia—the most common cause of death for children under the age of five worldwide.

Nearly three years after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit Haiti on January 12, 2010, taking a quarter of a million lives and leaving millions more injured and homeless, Direct Relief continues to support the most vulnerable people in the country with essential medications and supplies that they otherwise would likely go without.

This fall, a team of staff - including International Program Coordinator, Joe Harrison - traveled to Pakistan to visit local health care partners. Much of the trip was an eye-opening experience for Harrison, but one particular girl’s story will always remain in his memory. He shares his uplifting reflection below:

At just one year old, Ain-Ul-Haya was one of the millions severely injured when a 7.5 magnitude earthquake decimated northern Pakistan in 2005, killing an estimated 80,000 people.

This week, Direct Relief responded to an urgent request for medical supplies to treat patients in Cap Haitian, Haiti’s second largest city of more than 1.5 million people, after severe rains and flooding have devastated the region and caused an increase in cholera cases. These rains come on the heels of Hurricane Sandy, which killed 54 people and damaged more than 20,000 homes.

Written by Andrew MacCalla, Emergency Response Manager on November 29, 2012

Medicines and supplies contained in Direct Relief’s pre-positioned hurricane modules in Haiti continue to be in high demand following Hurricane Sandy as partners report increases in patients numbers and disease cases, including cholera.

Written by Andrew MacCalla, Emergency Response Manager on November 19, 2012

Earlier this month, Direct Relief provided a $50,000 grant to support essential obstetric fistula repair surgeries for women who are living with this devastating and debilitating condition in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu.

Direct Relief’s healthcare provider partners are assessing the situation after a massive 7.4-magnitude earthquake centered in Champerico, Guatemala, about 100 miles from Guatemala City.

“The epicenter was near the coast, but it was felt all over Guatemala, a grade 7.4, we hope to God that it does not recur,” reported Erika Orozco of Caritas de Guatemala in an email yesterday.