While healthcare in the United States might not be ideal, there are some things we can depend upon. Americans can expect to be treated in a sanitary facility, staffed by doctors and nurses, any day of the week. There is a ready supply of medications available to treat patients, including vaccinations. We have access to advanced medical equipment such as MRIs, and most operations are fairly routine. Our population doesn’t succumb to childhood diseases, such as measles or pertussis (whooping cough), or even polio.
But in Afghanistan, healthcare is more difficult to come by, and its entire health system is fragile. Outside of cities, facilities are few in remote areas of the country, leaving many without access to basic healthcare services. Of those that exist, their conditions are most often poor. Constructed of mud brick, these rarified clinics have compromised sanitary conditions, have few or no windows and unhygienic rooms with no ventilation. Still, they served a purpose and provided locals with a place to seek treatment for illness.
Fortunately, there is now one new place where those seeking medical assistance can go. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), along with Women for Afghan Women in Afghanistan as its monitoring partner, built the Siya Cheshman Basic Health Center. It’s located in the Zaranj City area of Nimroz Province, which borders Iran, and is one of the UNHCR’s Priority Areas for Return and Reintegration. This area hosts a high number of refugees and internally displaced persons. UNHCR aims to facilitate safe and dignified resettlement while promoting the well-being of returning refugees and host communities through infrastructure.
The Siya Cheshman Basic Health Center is a newly-constructed clinic that will provide outpatient care for a variety of health issues, including basic diagnostic services, maternal and child health, treatment of common illnesses and minor injuries, basic lab tests, vaccinations, health education and mental health support. It is estimated that 9,000 people will benefit, and this includes 2,000 females and 5,800 children.
While this is only one clinic in a country where so many more are desperately needed, its existence is nothing short of a miracle. Before this new health center was built, a mud structure stood as the only available place where one could seek treatment. Its walls were cracked, rendering it unusable in winter. Wash facilities were almost nonexistent, which created unsanitary conditions. This new clinic is solar powered to enable around-the-clock operations, has underground water storage facilities, and a separate building with toilets and sinks for hygienic purposes.
WAW is proud to have been able to partner with UNHCR to build such a needed and necessary clinic to serve those who so desperately seek what many take for granted — available health care. Lives will be saved here, and hope restored.
Blog written by Gretchen Weerheim, Women for Afghan Women
