Medicine, conflict, and survival
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Many survivors of the Khmer Rouge period in Cambodia and the subsequent war with Vietnam have now returned to Cambodia. In this two-stage household cluster survey in Siem Reap Province in Cambodia, we explored the mental health consequences on 166 landmine injury survivors selected from 1000 household in 50 clusters and an oversample of all landmine survivors. ⋯ These prevalences were statistically significantly higher than among the adult population who had not been injured by landmines. These data underscore the importance of providing mental health care services for the people in Siem Reap Province in Cambodia who have been injured by landmines.
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The fundamental concepts set forth in the formal Post-Conflict Needs Assessment (PCNA) initiative created by the United Nations Development Group have the potential to be adapted to assist local groups in documenting the needs of and the provision of health care to survivors of sex- and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In partnership with Congolese health care providers, we took the first step in advocating for a locally-adapted and focused needs assessment through the development and administration of surveys to providers in the South Kivu Province, DRC. ⋯ Providers also felt that the existing list of supplies was inadequate to meet the needs of survivors, and also that providers needed ongoing training to improve supply procurement and management, more knowledge of the needs of male survivors of SGBV, and more educational opportunities to improve the quality of care to survivors. Given the deficiencies expressed by providers in the surveys, this study demonstrated a critical need for a locally-adapted and focused needs assessment to improve health services to survivors.