Stories From Patients & Staff

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) launched an early rehabilitation project at Cherkasy hospital, in central Ukraine, in March 2023. The project integrates physiotherapy, psychological support and nursing care to address the complex needs of war-wounded patients early recovery process.

On 10 December 1999, then-international president James Orbinski began MSF’s Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech by demanding that Russia stop bombing civilians in Chechnya. 25 years later, our colleagues breathe new life into this powerful declaration of our principles.

Isabelle Defourny, president of MSF France, and Christopher Lockyear, MSF Secretary General, highlight the dire situation in north Gaza, where people have been facing one of the most vicious and violent attacks since the beginning of the war.

The conflict in Sudan—the world's largest internal displacement crisis—continues to rage, impacting millions. Dr Mohamed Bashir, MSF's former deputy medical coordinator in Sudan and now on assignment in South Sudan, shares his reflections on the far-reaching conflict as both medical humanitarian and a Sudanese person.

When a baby is rushed to the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) paediatric team in Herat, Afghanistan, it’s clear that he is dangerously unwell. Paediatrician Prudence Jarrett has recently worked on assignment in Herat and shares the story of a patient who was admitted to the intensive care ward at Herat Regional Hospital.

Dr Graham Knottenbelt is an anaesthetist from Auckland (Tāmaki Makaurau) who specialises in paediatric anaesthesia. He has recently completed his third assignment, in South Sudan, which marked a welcome return to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) after assignments in Sri Lanka and Democratic Republic of Congo in 2002-2003.

Patrick has been working for MSF for two years, ensuring that patients in need of essential medical care in Cross River get to hospital in time. Cross river is a region in southern Nigeria where, in areas such as Akor and Old Ndebeji, access to medical care has always been difficult.

Amid the ongoing Israeli bombardment and incursions across southern Lebanon, countless families have been uprooted, many seeking refuge in the coastal city of Saida. 

In South Sudan, mental health issues are overshadowed by poverty, violence, and displacement. Neglected by the health system and confronted by deep-rooted stigma, many people face their mental health struggles in silence, enduring a daily battle that goes unseen and unheard.

Dr. Ali Almohammed shares how the current situation in Lebanon reminds him of his own journey out of Syria in 2014.