Health Assistance to Internally Displaced Persons of FATA, Pakistan

Since 2009, South Waziristan Agency (SWA) has suffered a number of violent armed conflicts between security forces and Taliban causing massive destruction, several thousand deaths and creating over a half million displaced people. Due to negligence of issues related to internal displacement in UN, international and national law, internally displaced persons (IDPs) were afforded very little health care help during displacement. The research employed mixed methods in achieving the above objectives. It was conducted through surveys and in-depth interviews (IDIs) with IDPs. This study found that children and old age people were affected the most by infections and diseases among many age groups while women in reproductive ages suffered more due to reproductive health issues as compared to men. The rate of mortality was also much higher among children and pregnant women as compared to other age groups in this study due to in-appropriateness and irregularity of health care facilities. Although IDPs were affected by mental stress as much as physical one, still health related facilities of psychiatric help were totally absent in camps.