This report assesses the impact of the recent war in Iraq and the ensuing period of insecurity on health, the health care system and health reconstruction initiatives. It describes the reported 100,000 deaths and many more injuries attributable to conflict and violence and the current pattern of mental and physical illness. It gives an overview of the Iraqi health care system and barriers to good health care including problems with access to services, fragmentation, damaged infrastructure, inadequate medical supplies and poorly trained and supported health workers. It also highlights problems with the infrastructure that influence health, such as water and sanitation. In analysing the efforts at reconstruction, it highlights the inadequacies and challenges of efforts to build a new health system based on primary health care principles, freely available to all.
Keywords: conflict, security, health, health care, international development, Iraq
This report and an executive summary are available in English and Arabic, along with updates on the Iraq Health Monitoring Project, from the Medact office and on the Medact web site - http://www.medact.org
Medact
Challenging barriers to health
Published In London, UK, 2004 by Medact
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