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Syria
 The WWW Virtual Library: Public Health
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- (Statistical) Number of Inhabitants per Doctor: 1,037
- CIA World Factbook : Syria
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- Assessment on the Situation of Iraqi Refugees in Syria
"Most of the Iraqis who left Iraq since the last Iraqi war have been attracted by Syria's open door policy, its tolerance and generosity towards refugees. Hence in less than three years, a silent and steady exodus has made of Syria the host of the largest number (about 450.000) of Iraqis in the region. The good conditions offered to Iraqis in Syria were most likely the reason for the lack of international interest in regard to the refugee-like situation in Syria. In the beginning, Syria was the only country in the region which implemented without any kind of restrictions the Temporary Protection Regime (TP) as recommended by UNHCR. The TP regime, which has been initiated in anticipation of the March 2003 Iraq war, was meant to prevent the deportation of Iraqis. Obviously, the unrestricted acceptance of TP along with free access to public hospitals and schools have encouraged many Iraqis to come to Syria. However, the past year has witnessed a change in Syria's policy towards Iraqis. Hence, the TP regime has been replaced by the implementation of increasingly restrictive national immigration rules. Access to public hospitals has also become more restrictive. This has created difficulties for an increasing number of Iraqis some of whom have started to leave the region seeking asylum elsewhere. There is no doubt that the recent change in the Syrian traditional generosity towards refugees is, first, due to the significant impact of the Iraqi presence on Syria's social services, economic infrastructures and the daily lives of many Syrian citizens. It is also due to the deteriorating situation in the region. It is within this context that it has been decided… [to] carry out a comprehensive assessment of the situation of Iraqis in Syria, in order to adjust and develop… plans for the future. The present report reflects the findings and conclusions of that assessment. Among the key findings of the assessment there are four which are of crucial importance. The first one is that the Iraqis in Syria reflect a large spectrum of the Iraqi population in Iraq (in terms of ethnicity, religious affiliations, etc.). The second one is that many of the Iraqis belong to the middle class (independent professionals, academics, businessmen, etc.). The third one is that most of the Iraqis are not yet facing serious socioeconomic problems in Syria as they are still living off-of their savings which are, however, dwindling. The fourth one is that most of the Iraqis are interested in resettlement in a third-country of asylum." [UNHCR, UNICEF & WFP, March 2006]
- Estimating the beginning of the waterpipe epidemic in Syria
Background: Waterpipe smoking is becoming a global public health problem, especially in the Eastern Mediterranean region (EMR). Methods: We try in this study, which is a cross sectional survey among a representative sample of waterpipe smokers in cafes/restaurants in Aleppo-Syria, to assess the time period for the beginning of this new smoking hype. We recruited 268 waterpipe smokers (161 men, 107 women; mean age ± standard deviation (SD) 30.1 ± 10.2, response rate 95.3%). Participants were divided into 4 birth cohorts (≤ 1960, 1961–1970, 1971–1980, >1980) and year of initiation of waterpipe smoking and daily cigarette smoking were plotted according to these birth cohorts. Results: Data indicate that unlike initiation of cigarette smoking, which shows a clear age-related pattern, the nineties was the starting point for most of waterpipe smoking implicating this time period for the beginning of the waterpipe epidemic in Syria. Conclusion: The introduction of new flavored and aromatic waterpipe tobacco (Maassel), and the proliferation of satellite and electronic media during the nineties may have helped spread the new hype all over the Arab World. [author abstract] [BMC Public Health 2004, 4: 32]
- Injuries in Aleppo, Syria; first population-based estimates and characterization of predominant types
Background: Despite the growing burden of injuries worldwide, Syria and many other Arab countries still lack population-based estimates of different types of injuries. This study aims to provide first population-based estimates of major injuries in Syria and characterize groups at increased risk. Methods: An interviewer-administered population-based survey of adults 18–65 years residing in Aleppo, Syria was conducted in 2004. The study sample involved 2038 household representatives in Aleppo (45.2% men, mean age 35.3 ± 12.1, response rate 86%). We inquired about participants self-reported injuries in the past year that required medical attention as well as injuries among their household members. When reported, injuries were further assessed according to type, place, and outcome. Results: Overall, there was 153 self-reported injuries in the past year (77.3 per 1000 adult respondents, 93.1 per 1000 in men and 64.4 per 1000 in women, p = 0.02). Other than gender, injuries differed by age (the older age group being least affected), and place of occurrence, as men were more likely to sustain traffic injuries and be injured outside the home. Injuries were reported among 236 household members (21.0 per 1000), and were slightly more frequent in children than adults (22.0 per 1000 for children, and 19.7 per 1000 for adults, p = 0.2). Traffic injuries, falls, and poisoning (food) were by far the most common types of injury experienced by participants as well as their household members. Falls and traffic injuries seem to have caused most morbidity for the injured, while burns, although not frequently reported, were associated with an unfavourable outcome in the majority of cases. Conclusion: This information provides baseline information about the burden of different injuries in Syria, and the sociodemographic factors related to them. [author abstract] [BMC Public Health 2006, 6: 63]
- Iraqi Refugees: Seeking Stability in Syria and Jordan
"Over two million Iraqis are refugees in the Middle East, living in difficult conditions, primarily in Jordan and Syria. Their unresolved plight and their still largely unmet needs constitute a humanitarian crisis. Their presence has had an impact on the two countries where they are concentrated and, by extension, on the region as a whole. Although long hosts to Palestinian refugees, the countries of the Middle East have not been major refugee destinations in recent decades and this report raises questions about the limited regional response to a major refugee flow. At this point, most Iraqis and their hosts hope for a quick and peaceful end to the insecurity that has precipitated the flight, but events in Iraq raise serious doubts that their hopes will soon be fulfilled. Some Iraqis are hoping for resettlement in the United States and other countries of the west, a hope thus far available only to a very few. The report raises questions about the apparently limited ability of the US and other countries to mobilize a major resettlement effort similar to those that took place during the Cold War. More fundamental to the lives of the vast majority of the Iraqi refugees, it calls on the international community to launch a more robust humanitarian response that will assist and protect the Iraqi refugees while addressing the legitimate economic, political and security concerns of Jordan and Syria as hosts to such large numbers of refugees." [Institute for the Study of International Migration, Georgetown University and Center for International and Regional Studies Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar, 2007]
- Medicine Prices, Affordability, Availability and Component Costs in Syria
"In late 2003 the Ministry of Health (Directorate of Pharmaceutical Studies) conducted a field study to measure the prices, availability, affordability and component costs of some important medicines in Syria using the World Health Organization/Health Action International price measurement methodology. The prices of 27 medicines were collected in the public sector (procurement prices) private sector (patient prices in private retail pharmacies) and the price paid by private inpatients in public hospitals (termed the ‘other’ sector) in the capital, Damascus, and in country regions of Damascus, Aleppo, and Latakia. For each medicine, prices were collected and analysed for the innovator brand (product identified centrally) and the lowest price generic equivalent (product identified at each facility sampled). The price of the most sold product (innovator or generic) was also collected. The affordability of eight standard treatments was assessed as the number of days the lowest paid unskilled government worker would have to work to purchase the treatment. Component costs (mark-ups etc) were also assessed." [Health Action International, 2003]
- Reasons for underreporting of notifiable diseases by Syrian paediatricians
We investigated reasons for underreporting of notifiable diseases among Syrian paediatricians. Self-administered questionnaires and self-addressed envelopes were sent to all paediatricians listed in the recent records of the Syrian Medical Association. Of 723 questionnaires, 55 were returned by the post office due to an incorrect address. Only 160 questionnaires (23.9%) were answered. Approximately 50% of paediatricians gave two reasons for underreporting: lack of reporting forms and ignorance of reporting telephone numbers. Nearly 70% indicated that the most important improvements would be the availability of easy reporting forms and a condensed and feasible list of notifiable diseases. [author abstract] [Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal, Vol. 7, Nos. 4/5, July-September 2001, pp.590-596]
- Strengthening health systems management in Syria: Suggestions for national health accounts, social health insurances, health systems research and related issues of the Health Sector Modernization Programme
"The Health Sector Modernisation Programme of the Syrian Arab Republic – supported by the European Community – aims at increasing equity, efficiency, and quality of health services. At the same time it intends to achieve a maximum of transparency and accountability in public spending. This is to be supported by one of its six planned results, i.e. 'framework for sustainable financing of health sector in place'." [European Union, 2003]
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