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Humanitarian medical division

For us, the Medical Corps has the face of the grandparents we met in July

In the tent camps our team met older adults enduring pain in silence so their families would not worry, with nobody around to check their blood pressure or their blood sugar. Not surgery. Not complex treatment. Checks that take two minutes at any pharmacy. The IHE Medical Corps exists so that someone is there to do them.

The Medical Corps is IHE's volunteer health network: physicians, dentists, nurses, and psychologists who bring physical and mental health days to communities the emergency left without regular care.

It is built to return. The same camps, the same families, care that does not depend on the news cycle. A health day that happens once is a relief; one that comes back is something a family can count on.

An open suitcase filled with hygiene supplies as an IHE volunteer distributes them to children at the camp.
An open suitcase filled with hygiene supplies as an IHE volunteer distributes them to children at the camp.

What a health day brings

Basic checks

Blood pressure, blood sugar, and general consultations for adults and children.

Medicines and supplies

Essential medicines delivered along with the consultation, documented like every IHE delivery.

Mental health

Psychological first aid and emotional support for families living through the aftermath.

Dental care

Preventive and pediatric dental care, and oral health education.

Guiding principles

Six principles, written before the first health day

The Corps existed on paper before it existed in the camps, and these commitments came first. Each one names what we put ahead of what, so anyone can hold us to the order.

  1. Compassion before recognition.
  2. Service before status.
  3. Partnership before intervention.
  4. Prevention before crisis.
  5. Sustainability before dependency.
  6. Science guided by humanity.

The first health days travel with the September mission

The September mission includes physical and psychological health days in the camps the team already knows. That is where the Medical Corps stops being a plan and starts being practice.

See the September mission

If you work in health, this invitation is for you

We are looking for physicians, dentists, and psychologists who can volunteer time, on a mission or remotely. Nurses, students, and other health professionals are welcome too. Tell us who you are and what you do, and we will answer personally.

Write to programs@ihe.institute