Events

Past Event

Illness and Urban Displacement: Addressing the Needs of Refugees with Noncommunicable Diseases

January 29, 2019
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
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In this seminar, Dr. Fouad Fouad and Zahirah McNatt will share findings from their own research studies on non-communicable disease among refugees in the Middle East. Study findings from What’s Happening in Syria Even Affects the Rocks, and Responding to Changing Health Needs in Complex Emergencies will be discussed, to foster dialogue amongst stakeholders about how to improve the accessibility and quality of NCD services for refugees in non-camp settings. The presentations will be followed by breakout sessions that engages participants in a discussion on policy and practice implementation, to identify strategies for addressing NCD needs among refugees in urban settings, and produce recommendations for a variety of stakeholders that respond to the health needs of displaced communities in the Middle East.

Fouad M. Fouad, MD is Assistant Research Professor at the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, and a Co-Director of the Refugees Health Program at the Global Health Institute at the American University of Beirut (AUB). He is currently working on a number of research projects related to the Syria crisis and/or Syrian refugees, including “Responding to Changing Health Needs in Complex Emergencies: A Policy Imperative,” and “Identifying ways to promote health systems resilience in contexts of protracted displacement through systems analysis of UNRWA provision to Palestine refugees displaced by the Syria crisis.” Fouad is serving as a commissioner in two Lancet Commissions; AUB Lancet Commission: Syria and the crises in global governance, health and aid; and UCL Lancet Commission on Migration and Health
 
Zahirah McNatt, MHSA, is a senior research associate with the Syrian Refugee Initiative and a doctoral student at Columbia University’s, Mailman School of Public Health. Zahirah has led two research studies in Jordan focused on the health of refugees residing in urban settings, and the rights of refugees to access durable solutions. Zahirah has also taken on new work aimed at studying the effectiveness of emergency education programs for children in adversity in central and east Africa. Prior to these research roles, Zahirah spent ten years managing and implementing projects and reforms in health systems and human rights across Africa, South Asia and the Caribbean.