NYC Medics Working in Pakistan

NYC Medics is teaming up with Relief International to support humanitarian work in internally displaced person (IDP) camps in the Bajeur Agency province of Pakistan. The region has been the site of increased military operations against militant groups in recent months and has resulted in the displacement of more than 400,000 of the area’s 590,000 residents. Pakistani officials report that this is the largest internal displacement due to military action in Pakistan’s history.

NYC Medics has made a one-time grant to Relief International for its Mobile Medical Clinics in Bajeur Agency. The grant will be used to provide funding for local medical personnel working in IDP camp clinics. This grant is especially timely in light of the deteriorating security situation in this region of Pakistan, where most aid agencies unable to place international staff on the ground. Both organizations estimate that the influx of funds and supplies will help local health personnel treat an additional 2,000 to 3,000 displaced Pakistani residents.

MASSIVE EARTHQUAKE STRIKES CHINA
Death toll 13,000 and rising

In May, 2008, an 8.0 magnitude quake rocked Southeast China, killing upwards of 68,000 people and injuring more than 360,000 others. The earthquake was among the worst to strike China in decades, devastating countless small cities and towns in Sichuan and other nearby provinces. Over one million people have been impacted by this disaster that is unlike any other in recent history, and millions more will need assistance for years to recover from this tragic event.

While NYC Medics was not been able to directly respond to this disaster to date, due to access issues experienced by many international organizations, this event is the type that we believe we have the skills to be of help to people in need. The lessons learned from this and other disasters continue to inform our work both immediately and in the future.