Dr. Ruhul Abid, nominated for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize

Dr. Ruhul Abid, Associate Professor of Surgery (Research) at Brown University’s Warren Alpert Medical School, and his non-profit organization Health and Education for All (HAEFA) was nominated for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize.

HAEFA provides humanitarian aid and free health care at Rohingya refugee camps. Ruhul Abid is one of 318 candidates in the world to receive a nomination for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize for his nonprofit organization Health and Education for All. In 2020, the nonprofit has partnered with other organizations to combat COVID-19 in refugee camps.

Dr. Abid founded HAEFA in 2012 with the mission to “serve the underprivileged and displaced peoples and bring them under universal health coverage.” When covid first emerged in 2020, HAEFA shifted its efforts to provide emergency care within the refugee camps; over 70,000 U.S. dollars were raised to supply personal protective equipment to medical professionals working in Bangladesh, including over 10,000 KN95 masks and essential inhalers. The organization also distributed hygiene packets for high-risk refugees, cloth masks, thermometers, and toiletries.

Additionally, HAEFA collaborated with the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs and Project HOPE, to develop the program “Training of Trainers” which provided three, four-day, online training sessions for COVID-19 competency.

Congratulations to Dr. Abid and all the incredible work he does!

To learn more, click here and here!

URGENT: COVID-19 in Rohingya Refugee Camps

COVID-19 Inside the Rohingya Refugee Camps

Two cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in the Rohingya camps on May 15th, 2020. 1,900 Rohingya refugees are being isolated for testing. HAEFA and other aid agencies are doing everything they can to curb a massive outbreak of COVID-19 in the camps, but the conditions in the camps make this nearly impossible. ⁣

The virus is already spreading in the largest refugee camp in the world. As of May 18th, there are now six confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Rohingya refugee camps. This number may be underestimated due to lack of testing.

To add to this devastation, Super Cyclone Amphan is currently approaching Bangladesh from the Bay of Bengal. The super cyclone is due to sweep through the Cox’s Bazar region on May 20th, putting the local population and the 1+ million Rohingya refugees in a region vulnerable to landslides in serious danger. ⁣

To contribute to HAEFA’s COVID-19 response, you can donate at haefa.org/donatetohaefa. Donations support funding PPE for our healthcare workers in the Rohingya camps. Donations are matched by a Geneva-based company up to $10,000, so for every $1 you donate, $2 will go towards protecting Rohingya refugees from COVID-19!

HAEFA responses in Rohingya camps

Content written by Students for HAEFA, Phoebe Kennan and Jenna Mullen.

Training-of-Trainers Program in Collaboration with Brown University and Project Hope

HAEFA’s COVID-19 Training-of-Trainers

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Brown University undergraduate Jenna Mullen sourced and coordinated a 4-day COVID-19 training program for healthcare workers administered by Brown University and Project HOPE, facilitated by HAEFA. Utilizing a Training of Trainers model, 75 healthcare workers in the camps and in Dhaka from over 20 different organizations were directly trained. The next wave of training facilitated by HAEFA will prepare 3,000 healthcare workers to combat COVID-19 efficiently and protect themselves.

HAEFA partnered with Brown University's Watson Institute and Project HOPE which recently collaborated to develop a COVID-19 training program for health workers in high-risk countries. Project HOPE previously provided support to frontline workers in China, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Colombia, Indonesia and Ethiopia. Project HOPE was one of the few humanitarian organizations with a response team on the ground in China. HAEFA’s healthcare workforce received this training along with health workers from 20 distinct organizations. HAEFA’s physicians, MATS, midwives, lab technologists, health workers, IT, project coordinators, and the COO all participated in the training. This COVID-19 ToT training was conducted online for Ukhiya and Cox's Bazar government and non-governmental physicians, nurses and other health workers (as well as 8 Divisional Advisors, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDRB), National Heart Foundation (NHF), Kurmitol Hospital, and Kuwait Bangladesh Hospital).

Training taught and evaluated core competencies, including biology and transmission mechanisms; infection prevention and control; contact tracing; screening and triage; diagnosis and management; stabilization and resuscitation; health facility operations and surge capacity; and risk communication and public health messaging. The program used the Training-of-Trainers model to engage master trainers and coach new trainers.  

The ToT training was a 4-day program, including 3 hours per day, administered via Zoom. Training was conducted the week of the 19th of April starting at 6pm Bangladesh Standard Time (according to overall group preferences).

The schedule for the program was as follows:

Day 1– Monday, April 20, 2020

7am EST– Intro/ Background Module (Presented by Dr. Foggle)

8am EST– IPC (Presented by Dr. Foggle)

9am EST– Case Exercise (Presented by Dr. Foggle)

Day 2– Tuesday, April 21, 2020

7am EST– Surveillance (Presented by Dr. Karim)

8am EST– Screening/Triage (Presented by Dr. Karim)

9am EST– Case Exercise (Presented by Dr. Karim)

Day 3– Wednesday, April 22, 2020

7am EST– Stabilization/Resuscitation (Presented by Dr. Aluisio)

8am EST– Diagnosis/Management (Presented by Dr. Aluisio)

9am EST– Case Exercise (Presented by Dr. Aluisio)

Day 4– Thursday, April 23, 2020

7am EST– Surge Capacity (Presented by Dr. Aung)

8am EST– Risk Communication (Presented by Dr. Aung)

9am EST– Case Exercise (Presented by Dr. Aung)

We hope this program will exponentially increase the number of healthcare professionals are trained and prepared to deal with this crisis and reduce its impact in Bangladesh.

Population Density in Rohingya Refugee Camps

Population Density Comparisons

Rohingya refugee camps are 6 times more dense than New York City, the densest city in the US. This dramatic difference is further exacerbated by the fact that Rohingya shelters only have one floor compared to high-rises prevalent in major US cities. In Rohingya camps, on average, 6 people share a single room in a  shelter/ home. Flattening the curve in refugee camps will be ineffective due to these conditions. COVID-19 will spread through the population extremely quickly, the already limited health force will be overwhelmed and mortality rates will be extraordinarily high.⁣

⁣Please consider liking and sharing our page or donating if you can (http://haefa.org/donatetohaefa). ⁣

A Geneva based company will be matching all donations up to $10,000 so for every $1 you donate, $2 will go towards protecting Rohingya refugees from COVID-19!⁣

Graphics designed by Brown University Student, Jenna Mullen. Content written by Students for HAEFA, Jenna Mullen and Phoebe Kennan.

Vulnerability of Rohingya refugees to COVID-19

UPDATE: The first case of Coronavirus was confirmed in Cox’s Bazar, dangerously close to the refugee camps where HAEFA operates. A disastrous mass outbreak is quickly approaching the camps, with consequences for over a million vulnerable refugees living there.

Rohingya refugees have high rates of non-communicable and chronic diseases which put them at high risk for COVID-19 severe illness, hospitalization and mortality.

• In 1983, the Myanmar Citizenship Law stripped Rohingya people of their citizenship. This means that the Rohingya have been denied healthcare for nearly 40 years.

• 22.8% of the Rohingya refugee population in the Cox’s Bazar refugee camps is considered “at-risk,” translating to nearly 200,000 "at-risk" people living in under 13 square kilometers.

• Underlying conditions such as respiratory infections, hypertension, diabetes, and age above 65 years increase the risk of COVID-19 severe infection, hospitalization and mortality.

HAEFA’s medical professionals have been working hard to support this population, but a COVID-19 outbreak in the camps would be devastating. We need to protect these healthcare professionals– the first responders in this crisis– with protective equipment and gear. If these workers become sick, it will have devastating consequences for the health of the Rohingya population and the containment of COVID-19.

HAEFA’s medical staff urgently need funds for gloves, masks, and protective equipment to care for the Rohingya community in Bangladesh. To support their work and help combat the spread of COVID-19 in the largest refugee camp in the world, donate today at http://haefa.org/donatetohaefa.

Graphic designed by Brown University undergraduate, Jenna Mullen. Content written by Students for HAEFA, Jenna Mullen and Phoebe Kennan.

HAEFA's response to COVID-19

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Above is HAEFA’s referral pathway for COVID-19 patients within the Rohingya refugee camps, and images from a factory in Dhaka that is preparing small scale PPE gown manufacturing for Bangladesh because worldwide production is not meeting the demands.

HAEFA’s healthcare professionals are working to reduce transmission of COVID-19 within the Rohingya Refugee camps and to screen, test, and refer patients who are symptomatic. The Rohingya camps are extremely vulnerable to the spread of COVID-19 due to overcrowding, unhygienic conditions, and poor nutrition.

HAEFA is raising money for buying PPE for the medical professionals who are taking care of the ICU/Quarantine Patients, and N95 masks for the regular medical professionals (including doctors, nurses, medical assistants, and ward boys) who are taking care of the admitted and out-patients in the hospitals, clinics, and in the Rohingya refugee (FDMN) camps in Bangladesh.

Today HAEFA has procured 500 N95 masks in Dhaka which will be distributed as follows: 300 to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, the largest hospital in the country, and 200 to HAEFA medical teams in the Rohingya camps. We have placed orders for 5000 N95 masks from Shenzhen China to be shipped from Hong Kong to Dhaka by March 31.

You can become a supporter and help HAEFA protect the medical professionals of Bangladesh– the frontline fighters to save lives during this coronavirus pandemic!

Your donation of $6 will buy 50 pairs of hand gloves, $20 can help purchase 10 N95 masks, and $25 can help purchase 1 full set of PPE (including gown, mask, cap, protective goggles, and shoe covers).