{"id":10796,"date":"2020-09-24T08:06:26","date_gmt":"2020-09-24T15:06:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/?p=10796"},"modified":"2020-09-24T08:08:12","modified_gmt":"2020-09-24T15:08:12","slug":"ten-fold-increase-in-covid-19-cases-adds-new-challenges-in-northwest-syria-medecins-sans-frontieres-msf-international","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldcampaign.net\/?p=10796","title":{"rendered":"“Ten-fold increase in COVID-19 cases adds new challenges in northwest Syria”, M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res (MSF) International"},"content":{"rendered":"

Project Update, Paris, 22 September 2020<\/p>\n

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Northwest Syria <\/a>is currently witnessing a sharp increase in the number of patients with COVID-19<\/a>, which is now ten times higher than what it was just a month ago. As of 22 September, 640 people had tested positive for the new coronavirus <\/a>in the region, almost 30 per cent of them health workers.<\/p>\n

Eighty new cases were recorded on 14 September alone, the highest one-day total since the first case was recorded in early July. Furthermore, testing has remained limited throughout that time, which raises doubts about the real rate of transmission and the true number of infections.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Coronavirus increasing among displaced people<\/h2>\n

This increase in the number of people infected with COVID-19 in the region is adding more challenges to an already-dire situation in northwest Syria. More than two million people, over half of the population, have been displaced by conflict.<\/p>\n

Most of them now live in overcrowded camps with scarce access to water and poor sanitation. Control measures, such as physical distancing, hand-washing and isolating are challenging, if not simply impossible, for most camp residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore and more COVID-19 cases are being recorded among displaced people living in camps and this is worrying,\u201d says Dr Ammar, MSF medical activity manager in northwest Syria. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to help the camps\u2019 inhabitants protect themselves against the virus, but we can\u2019t change the overall situation and the fact that they live in such a place. We need to adapt constantly to provide solutions for these people who already are living in incredibly difficult conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

We\u2019re trying to help the camps\u2019 inhabitants protect themselves against the virus, but we can\u2019t change the overall situation and the fact that they live in such a place.<\/q>DR AMMAR, MSF MEDICAL ACTIVITY MANAGER IN NORTHWEST SYRIA<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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MSF teams raising awareness and distributing soap<\/h2>\n

Since April 2020, MSF teams have distributed more than 63,000 hygiene kits, including items such as soap and detergent, to over 26,000 displaced families in several camps across Idlib governorate and northern Aleppo governorate.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe put in place different measures to prevent creating crowds of people coming to pick up their kits during these distributions,\u201d explains Osama, a logistician supervising one of the distribution campaigns. \u201cPeople are asked to maintain a safe distance between each other and to regularly wash and sanitise their hands. We ask each family to only send one person to the distribution site.\u201d<\/p>\n

Our health educators also conduct awareness-raising sessions about the virus, especially how it is transmitted and how they can prevent this, with people queuing to receive the kits.
\n\u201cUnderstanding COVID-19 and knowing more about it is a big step towards avoiding catching it,\u201d says Osama.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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