HPIC & Anera Partner to Support Premature Neonates in Lebanon
September 29, 2022 | OAKVILLE, ON – A shipment of specialized medicines that will provide treatment to preterm newborns in Lebanon arrived at Anera’s distribution center in Lebanon last week. Globally, 15 million babies are born preterm every year. That is one in 10 babies.
In partnership, Anera and Health Partners International of Canada (HPIC) have launched the “A Neo-Life” project that will aim to support healthcare needs and increase access to treatment for Lebanese and refugee infants who are born prematurely. Currently in Lebanon, 18,000 babies are born preterm each year and need to be admitted to a neonatal intensive care unit — but with the country experiencing significant gaps in the availability of adequate facilities, equipment, medicine, and medical supplies, many of these newborns are going without necessary medicines.
HPIC and Anera are working together to fill this gap and provide healthcare to those babies in need. A number of Canadian pharmaceutical and medical supply companies have donated medicines, including Arbutus Medical, Fertility Surgical Centre of Toronto, Fresenius Kabi Canada, Medline Canada and Pharmascience, with an estimated value of $225,792 CND ($165,801 USD). A Canadian of Lebanese origin has generously secured funding for this project.
“We are very proud to work with Anera and provide healthcare to the tiniest and most fragile citizens in Lebanon. Both the Tripoli Government Hospital and the Karantina Government Hospital specialize in the care of premature babies and we are confident that this aid will benefit preterm babies and give renewed hope to their families,” said Lois Brown, president of Health Partners International Canada. “We want to ensure that these babies have access to the medicines that they need, and we are grateful to all the partners in this project who are supporting this initiative.”
Dima Zayat, Anera’s deputy country director in Lebanon, said,
“They say it takes a village to raise a child, but it takes an army to support a premature baby. The support needed for premature babies and their parents is enormous. Couple that with an economic crisis, a critical lack of medicines, a massive shortage in specialized doctors and nurses, and you get the perfect storm. We at Anera are extremely proud of our partnership with HPIC to help alleviate some of these challenges. Parents can rest assured that, regardless of their economic struggles, their children will still have access to basic medicines and healthcare services needed for their babies’ growth and survival.”
A Neo-Life project will run for two years, with a total of four medical shipments that will help address the needs of premature Lebanese and refugee babies in Lebanon.
LOIS BROWN AND DIMA ZAYAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR A LIMITED NUMBER OF INTERVIEWS
For more information:
For HPIC
Dayana Gomez
Director, Philanthropy and Communications
[email protected]
For Anera in Lebanon
Serene Dardari
Regional Communications Manager
[email protected]
For Anera in DC
Steven Fake
Media Relations Officer
202.266.9719
[email protected]
About Anera
Since 1968, Anera has helped refugees and others hurt by conflicts in the Middle East live with dignity and purpose. Anera, which has no political or religious affiliation, works on the ground with partners in the West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, Lebanon, and Jordan. We mobilize resources for immediate humanitarian relief and for sustainable health, education, and economic development efforts. Our staff are from the communities they serve, navigating the politics that constrict progress to get help where it’s needed most. We will keep building better lives until hope finds its way in the Middle East.
About HPIC
Since 1990, Health Partners International of Canada (HPIC) has been improving the health and well-being of more than one million people around the world every year. HPIC is set apart by its unique relationship with Canada’s pharmaceutical industry in receiving donations of medicine and medical supplies for ongoing work in international development. HPIC works with many partners, including Canadian health care professionals, government and non-government organizations, companies, foundations and everyday Canadians to bring health to children and families living in vulnerable communities. Being the only charity licensed by Health Canada to handle donated medicines, Canadians choose to partner with HPIC to support healthcare systems around the world with limited resources. HPIC’s mission has directly impacted more than 25 million people in 130 countries. Small, but mighty, HPIC will continue to deliver #HealthandHope around the world.