In this third and final part of her blog series from Aweil, South Sudan, Dr Madeleine Finney-Brown describes an unforgettable day in the paediatric Intensive Care Unit. 

While the COVID-19 pandemic dominated headlines in 2020, there was no end to other diseases, emergencies and crises affecting people globally.  
  
Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) continued to work alongside health authorities and communities in more than 70 countries. 
  
From assisting Syrians displaced by conflict to continuing essential sexual and reproductive health services for women and girls, these are ten of our biggest responses outside of COVID-19 in 2020. 

In 2020, Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) provided medical care for people in more than 70 countries. From responding to disease epidemics to providing healthcare in conflict zones, here are some of the most memorable stories from our patients over the last year. 

In part two of her blog series from Aweil, South Sudan, Dr Madeleine Finney-Brown meets the mother of a boy with Down syndrome, torn between the hospital and home.

Dr Madeleine Finney-Brown is an advanced paediatric trainee from Melbourne working in the MSF-run paediatrics department of Aweil Civil Hospital, Aweil, South Sudan. In the first of a three-part blog, Madeleine describes the terrible effects of cerebral malaria in young children during the malaria ‘peak’. 

Nurses and midwives are the backbone of Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) multidisciplinary teams. They also fulfill diverse and critical roles in health promotion, patient education and community care. 

Throughout 2020, MSF is celebrating the efforts of nurses and midwives and highlighting their daily contributions in and alongside MSF projects.

Severe flooding is affecting an estimated 1.3 million people across South Sudan and Ethiopia, inundating homes and leaving many without adequate food, water or shelter. Heavy summer rains have seen many areas flooded since July, with river levels continuing to rise.

The civil war in South Sudan has had widespread effects on civilians since it began in 2013. MSF teams are responding to the latest wave of violence, which has displaced tens of thousands of people into the bush and left them in need of healthcare, food, sanitation, and basic shelter. 

The work of our midwives, ensuring high quality care and continuity of care, is too often unsung. On International Day of the Midwife 2020, we recognise their pivotal role.