Operational Update: Medical Aid Reaches Migrants, Displaced Patients in Turkey, and More – Türkiye

Over the past seven days, Direct Relief has delivered 514 shipments of requested medical aid to 43 U.S. states and territories and 15 countries worldwide.

The shipments contained 10.2 million defined daily doses of medication, including cardiovascular medicines, vitamins, PPE, antibiotics, and more.

DIRECT RELIEF EMERGENCY BACKPACKS DEPLOYED TO ASSIST MIGRANTS

Recently, large groups of migrants have been traveling to Piedras Negras, Mexico, across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas, in an effort to enter the United States. Mexican authorities estimated the number of crosses in the past couple of days in Piedras Negras to be upwards of 4,000.

In response, Direct Relief is deploying 15 field medic packs and five emergency health kits, each filled with essential medicines and supplies, funded by FedEx to support the Coahuila Ministry of Health’s efforts to provide essential medical services to migrants traveling to the United States.

Also in collaboration with FedEx, Direct Relief delivered 40 field medic packs to support the Operational Center for Contingency Attention, or COPAC, Mexico’s Federal Health Secretariat, responsible for responding to health emergencies nationwide.

These specialized backpacks that contain supplies and equipment to meet a variety of prevalent disaster-related health needs, including infection control, diagnostics, trauma care, and PPE, will better equip the COPAC team as they deploy in response to a dengue outbreak in the states of Yucatan, Veracruz, Quintana Roo, Morelos, and Puebla, where thousands of cases have recently been confirmed. Additionally, the requested backpacks will aid COPAC as they respond to other current and future disasters across Mexico.

CA FIRESCOPE MEETS AT DIRECT RELIEF

Yesterday, Direct Relief hosted over 70 representatives from firefighting agencies across California today for the FIRESCOPE Board of Directors meeting.

To learn more about FIRESCOPE and its fire emergency coordination efforts, click here.

HASUDER in Turkey Helps Women Affected by February Earthquakes

The Association of Public Health Specialists, or HASUDER, is a nonprofit in Turkey helping fill an important gap in nation public health services in Hatay, Turkey, the most affected province in Turkey by the February earthquakes. It is also an area where sexual and reproductive health resources have since been limited.

Supported by Direct Relief funding, HASUDER has continued operating its sexual and reproductive health outpatient clinic in Hatay. A physician and two midwives staff the clinic, and the site also includes accommodations for staff. Immediately after the earthquakes, the clinic was based in the largest tent city in Hatay but has since relocated to better serve the displaced population who have moved into longer-term temporary container housing.

With the remaining funds, HASUDER has implemented a new mobile health program, allowing the organization to reach significantly more women outside the central camps and others based in rural areas. In three months, HASUDER provided access to services for 1,254 women, largely through their new mobile services division.

These services were available not only to Turkish women but also provided displaced Syrian women with quality and culturally appropriate services through a HASUDER translator, removing a barrier often faced when navigating national public health services. The women received various services, including contraceptive material distribution, infection treatment, and education covering family planning methods, sexually transmitted infections, hygiene, gender-based violence, and breast cancer.

GAMING FOR GOOD: SPEEDRUN COLOSSEUM

Direct Relief is holding the second annual Speedrun Colosseum live-streamed gaming event October 6-8 from Las Vegas, featuring some of the world’s best video game speedrunners and benefitting the organization’s global disaster and emergency response efforts. The live broadcast will be streamed on Twitch, the leading social video platform and community for gamers.

Founded in 2017, the Colosseum event series is an e-gaming initiative by Direct Relief aiming to unite communities for good. Each Colosseum event brings together some of the most entertaining online creators to produce a show for their combined audiences while encouraging viewers to learn more about Direct Relief’s humanitarian efforts.

Over the past six years, Colosseum communities have donated more than $2.3 million to help improve the health and lives of people affected by poverty, natural disasters, and other emergencies.

Visit the site for more information and to tune into the event.

DR. BYRON SCOTT NAMED “DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR – NONPROFIT”

This week, the National Association of Corporate Directors, or NACD, the authority on boardroom practices representing more than 23,000 board members, announced the honorees of the 2023 NACD Directorship 100, an annual recognition of the leading corporate directors, corporate governance experts, policymakers, and influencers who significantly impact boardroom practices and performance.

Dr. Byron Scott, who has been a part of Direct Relief’s Board of Directors since July 2016, and who currently serves as Vice-Chair, was named “Director of the Year – Nonprofit.”

Dr. Byron Scott is a physician leader with over 30 years of healthcare industry experience. He now serves as an advisor, consultant, and educator in healthcare. A board-certified emergency medicine physician, he has expertise in quality, health equity, physician leadership, and governance.

He previously was Deputy Chief Health Officer at IBM Watson Health and Associate Chief Medical Officer at Truven Health Analytics, prior to acquisition by IBM. He also worked for EmCare, a physician practice management company, for over 20 years in various leadership, executive, and clinical roles. He practiced emergency medicine for 25 years, including two years as a faculty member at Orlando Regional Medical Center Emergency Medicine Residency Program.

“Exemplifying board leadership is a top priority for our organization, and this year’s peer-nominated Directorship 100 honorees demonstrate their excellence in governance,” says NACD president and CEO Peter Gleason. These awardees exemplify NACD’s principles of director professionalism: integrity, mature confidence, informed judgment, and high-performance standards.

OPERATIONAL SNAPSHOT

WORLDWIDE

This week, Direct Relief shipped 9.0 million defined daily doses of medication outside the U.S.

Countries that received medical aid over the past week included:

• Sri Lanka
• Ethiopia
• Fiji
• India
• Yemen
• Syria
• Malawi
• Paraguay
• Lebanon
• Uganda
• Tanzania
• Botswana
• Nigeria
• Haiti

UNITED STATES

Direct Relief delivered 488 shipments containing more than 13 tons of medications over the past week to organizations, including the following:

• Clinica Esperanza/Hope Clinic, Rhode Island
• Open Door Health Center, Florida
• Findley Foundation Inc, Wisconsin
• San Jose Clinic, Texas
• Lake County Free Clinic, Ohio
• Matthew 25, Inc., Indiana
• The Pic Place, Colorado
• Asian Pacific Health Care Venture, Inc, California
• Acacia Medical Mission, Texas
• Innis Community Health Center, Inc, Louisiana

YEAR-TO-DATE (GLOBAL)

Since January 1, 2023, Direct Relief has delivered 16,100 shipments to 2,263 healthcare providers in 55 U.S. states and territories and 85 countries.

These shipments contained 423.6 million defined daily doses of medication valued at $1.6 billion (wholesale), totaling 5.2 million lbs.