Dr. Hannah Tappis, associate faculty in the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s department of international health and Center for Humanitarian for Health, has published a commentary entitled, “Understanding indirect impacts of conflict on health can save lives,” in the latest edition of the Humanitarian Health Digest, a joint venture of The Lancet and the Center for Humanitarian for Health.
In the commentary, Dr. Tappis reflects on findings from a recent study on maternal mortality that occurred in the July–August 2014 conflict in Gaza. Researchers interviewed women and community members and investigated medical records before and after the 50-day conflict. The findings are an important contribution to a neglected issue – the well-being of women and girls during a humanitarian crisis. Tappis also emphasizes the importance of providing health services beyond lifesaving measures to women, families and communities in humanitarian settings.
The Humanitarian Health Digest is a quarterly bibliography of published peer-reviewed journal articles on humanitarian health. It includes one or two new commentaries on peer-reviewed articles cited in the Digest. The complete digest is available for free on the Center for Humanitarian Health’s website.