Maternitainer for Dar’a-Syria

Together with Cordaid and Bijzondere Noden Hospitainers sent a Maternitainer to Dar’a – Syria to provide medical assistance to pregnant women and victims of sexual violence.

During war women are extra vulnerable to suffer from damaged infrastructures and anarchy. Pregnant women particularly face risks as one in five pregnancies will at some point face complications that require professional medical care.

With Syria currently hosting more than 120,000 pregnant women and almost 60 percent of the hospitals being destroyed, the magnitude of the humanitarian disaster for these women is increasing exponentially and aid is becoming more essential by the day.

Another horrific notion is the increase of sexual violence. According to the International Rescue Committee:

“Rape has become a significant and disturbing feature of the Syrian civil war”.  

Physical injuries caused by the use of force or weapons likes sticks, guns, bottles, etc. are major and direct care is essential to treat these and to prevent sexual transmittable infections. Although no reliable numbers are available, the UN reported 38,000 appeals for help after sexual and gender based violence in 2013 alone, which is just the tip of the iceberg.

Both disastrous developments increased the drive Hospitainer felt to help these women, so they approached Cordaid and Bijzondere Noden to address the health issues. That’s why a Maternitainer will be sent to Dar’a, a place south of Damascus near the Jordanian border.

The Maternitainer is a medical unit installed in a 20 ft shipping container where assisted deliveries can take place and victims of sexual violence can be treated. Because this unit is based on the trailer of a truck it can be rapidly deployed and retracted when the situations becomes too dangerous. The goal is to treat around 450 women on an annual basis.