6 May 2014 – In a poverty-stricken border town of Haradh, home to thousands of internally-displaced persons (IDPs) mainly from Sa’ada, WHO offers various life-saving health care services to the impoverished locals and IDPs. It is a remote town located close to the border with Saudi Arabia.
With a population of more than 100 000, Haradh is hosting the highest number of IDPs. WHO supports the public Haradh Hospital and runs the health centre in IDP camps, providing them with a comprehensive primary health care services and basic medical emergency services. In addition, WHO has provided the only psychiatrist in the area.
WHO Yemen has extensively supported various health interventions through delivery of health services by the health centre in Mazraq IDP Camp–I; and mobile medical teams for outside the camp IDPs and host communities and rehabilitation and equipping the Haradh district hospital. The interventions have been led by WHO sub-office in Haradh, in collaboration with Ministry of Public Health and Population.
More than 49 000 consultations have been carried out by the WHO in Haradh Camp-I and over another 45 000 consultations were recorded through mobile medical services in Haradh and Khyran areas for outside the camp IDPs and host communities.
The rehabilitation and equipping of Haradh Public Hospital, as the main governmental referral hospital in the area, has been almost been completed by WHO and it will function with full capacity. Yahya Jarad, the Director General of the Health Office in Haradh, is highly appreciative of WHO role in improving health services readiness in Harradh area filling the gaps in health care services. “The cooperation between WHO and the Haradh Health Office is great. WHO has distributed medicine and provided nurses, midwives, physician assistants and clinical laboratory technician for the IDPs camps and the public hospital,” he said.
Malnutrition is also another main health change facing the area. WHO has an effective intervention in this side. “WHO support the only therapeutic Feeding Center (TFC) in the district. Unlike past time, we have been able to help many cases coming from Haradh and neighboring areas,” Jarad added.
WHO also leads a monthly health sub-cluster meeting to discuss health issues and problems to be presented to the Ministry of Public Health and Population.