UOSSM USA
Together, saving lives and building hope
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The 10-year ongoing Syrian conflict led to the collapse of health infrastructure and public health system, leaving millions of internally displaced persons(IDPs) in urgent need of healthcare services, suffering from infectious and non-communicable diseases, poor maternal and child health, trauma, physical disabilities, and mental health issues, while healthcare workers continually flee the country. Healthcare workers who remain face significant challenges, systematic attacks on healthcare facilities and conditions that severely inhibit healthcare delivery. Millions of people fled the country seeking refuge in neighboring and other countries. Currently, there are over 4 million IDPs living in harsh living conditions, in particular the most vulnerable, women and children, in northwest Syria. There has been a rise in malnutrition cases as many are food insecure and living in extreme poverty and COVID-19 pandemic brought about a crisis on top of the existing health and humanitarian crisis.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Primary Health Care
UOSSM has led the primary health care initiative in Syria; addressing the increasing health needs of the general public, through the rehabilitation of existing, destroyed health care facilities, and the establishment of new medical facilities in areas of need. UOSSM has provided more than 4.5 million health services to the Syrian people affected by the crisis, in besieged areas, hard-to-reach areas, and across the country since 2013.
The current services offered at UOSSM’s primary healthcare centers and mobile clinics in northern Syria:
• Family and Internal Medicine
• OB-GYN and Reproductive health services
• Child health management
• Mental health services and psychosocial support
• Nutrition and community health services.
• Provision of medications, free of charge
• Chronic diseases management.
• Infectious diseases management.
• Dental health services
• Diagnostic services.
• Referral services.
Mental Health Care and Psychosocial Support
UOSSM has played an integral role in the mental health, as a leader, expert, and innovator, in the Syrian crisis, and led the way by taking strategic mental health initiatives since 2013, to find constantly evolving solutions for the growing mental health issues arising among the Syrian people due to the armed conflict.
1-Established the first Mental Health and Psycho-Social Support (MHPSS) centers in Reyhanli in Turkey late 2013, and in northwest Syria early 2014, with Tele-Psychiatry support, in addition to establishment of the only inpatient acute mental health unit in northern Syria.
2-Initiated an operating model and pathways to be able to provide MHPSS and protection services from a single facility to cover the multiple needs of beneficiaries, in coordination with the other service providers in the field.
3-Trained hundreds of Syrian service providers on MHPSS and protection services, who became experts in this field in the native language of the beneficiaries.
4-Played a major role in establishing MHPSS strategy within the Syrian context in WHO cluster in Turkey.
The services provided at UOSSM MHPSS centers in northern Syria and Turkey are:
• Mental health and provision of psychiatric medications, free of charge
• Psychotherapy and psychosocial support (group- individual)
• Special Needs rehabilitation (SNR) - provided to children with special needs
• Outreach services and awareness campaigns
• School mental health services (Syria)
• Training and capacity building in the MHPSS program
• Provision of MHPSS services at UOSSM’s Primary Health Care centers and mobile clinics (Syria)
Protection
In 2017, UOSSM developed protection interventions focusing on Child Protection (CP) and preventing and responding to Gender-Based Violence (GBV). The program is aimed to enhance the protection of at-risk groups from the effects of conflict, including, but not limited to, protection activities that are specifically designed to prevent and respond to rights violations.
UOSSM builds local capacity in many areas, including psychological first aid, child protection case management, family tracing and reunification, parenting skills training, and protection monitoring. UOSSM participates in the protection sector working group in northern Syria and coordinates with staff to discuss challenges and develop solutions. UOSSM also participates in family reunification and child labor working groups, focusing on the development of intervention and response strategies.
Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation
UOSSM provides physiotherapy and rehabilitation services in Syria and Turkey, to those suffering from physical weakness, injuries, congenital or acquired disabilities to improve their quality of life and increase the ability for independent individuals to positively contribute to society.
In Syria, UOSSM’s Bab Al-Hawa Rehabilitation, located in the Idlib suburbs in northwest Syria, consists of the long-term care center, physiotherapy center, and urology and bladder rehabilitation center. The urology and bladder rehabilitation center is the only one of its kind in northern Syria. The physiotherapy center has been providing services since 2014.
In Turkey, UOSSM Turkey is one of the first and primary providers of physiotherapeutic health care for predominantly Syrian refugees in Turkey, with 3 physical rehabilitation centers in: Reyhanli (Established in 2012), Gaziantep, and Kilis. UOSSM Turkey implements physical rehabilitation services to assist injured and disabled refugees in Turkey to maintain, improve, or restore a refugee patient’s physical functioning, alleviate pain, or prevent physical dysfunction. UOSSM Turkey delivers uniform physiotherapy assessment, treatment, and follow-up services across its 3 physical rehabilitation centers; trying to meet the needs, at high standards, of all age groups of children, men and women. Among the services provided at the centers are, physiotherapy consultations, rehabilitation and physical therapy, prosthetic referrals if warranted, and pre- and post-prosthetic rehabilitation (i.e. artificial limbs).
Hospital Support
UOSSM has been providing emergency medical relief in Syria since early 2012. UOSSM has supported many hospitals with medical supplies and equipment, doctors and healthcare workers, and the ambulance system (EMT) in Syria. Currently, UOSSM supports several hospitals and the EMT in northern Syria.
One of UOSSM’s major initiatives is the establishment of Bab Al-Hawa Hospital (BHH), which launched its initial operations at the end of 2012. Bab Al-Hawa Hospital is currently the most strategic, important healthcare facility and the largest emergency and specialty hospital in northern Syria and is considered the “Referral Hospital” in the region, because of its safe location near the Turkish border, in addition to the extensive services and complex clinical care it provides. Many of these services are not available at other hospitals in Northern Syria. BHH supports a population of over 4 million civilians in the area. With its 9 operating rooms, adult, pediatric, and neonatal Intensive Care Units (ICUs), and 15 specialty outpatient medical clinics, BHH not only has the capacity to provide emergency triage and lifesaving surgeries, but also conducts many specialized surgeries and provides specialty medical services to thousands of people on a monthly basis. The ED at BHH is considered the only referral center to Turkish hospitals, for cases that cannot be dealt with at BHH and other hospitals inside Syria. The hospital provides a broad range of specialty medical and surgical services including general, thoracic, vascular, orthopedic, neuro, urologic, ophthalmic, maxillofacial, E.N.T, pediatric surgeries, and medical care, in addition to dialysis, outpatient cardiology, colonoscopy and others. Within BHH lies the largest advanced blood bank in the area, producing 1000 blood bags, with different blood components, per month to hospital and medical points in the region. BHH conducts an average of 900 major surgeries and provides medical services to an average of 20,000 patients per month.
Due to its strategic importance, and relative safety and proximity to the Turkish Border, BHH attracted many donors and partners, who had, and continue to have great interests to support UOSSM Bab Al-Hawa Hospital. Since its establishment in late 2012, Bab Al-Hawa Hospital's staff and operations were partially or fully supported by many donors and partners. The King Salman Foundation fully supported BHH for 2 years. Currently, Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS) Foundation is supporting the staff salaries and operations of the hospital.
Specialized Medical and Mental Health Training
UOSSM recognizes the importance of building the capacity of local health personnel. Since 2012, UOSSM has trained thousands of health worker in both Syria and Turkey, empowering them with skills and knowledge to save lives, address the mental health and well-being of affected people, and provide quality care. Training and capacity building of staff, service providers and local community, are part of any UOSSM programs.
COVID-19 Crisis and Humanitarian Lifesaving Relief
COVID-19 Response
In response to the potentially catastrophic situation, UOSSM has directly contributed to the joint efforts of the COVID-19 innovative Idlib response in northwest Syria, coordinated by WHO in the region. One of the unique aspects of this initiative is the proactive measures taken to reduce the spread of the virus. If there is a suspected case of COVID-19, the patient is sent to a community-based isolation centers (CBICs) for further evaluation and treatment. This process has helped contain a widespread outbreak of the coronavirus in crowded displacement camps and other areas in northwest Syria. Global UOSSM has been working tirelessly to stop the spread of the virus with an emergency plan implementing the following proactive measures:
• Supporting primary health care centers (PHC’s)
• Establishing and operating community-based isolation centers (CBICs)
• Sterilizing displacement camps
• Distributing N95 masks and PPEs to hospitals and health care centers in northern Syria.
• Distributing hygiene kits containing sanitizing and personal care items
• Distributing nutrition and food baskets
• Establishing a distance-learning center in Afrin
• Providing awareness and training on COVID-19 to medical and administrative personnel
• Distributing educational awareness brochures about COVID-19 in areas of displacement.
Humanitarian Lifesaving Relief
PROACTIVE MEASURES TO IMPROVE HEALTH AND PREVENT MALNUTRITION
Many of the families have been displaced several times and suffer from emotional stress. Malnutrition cases are on the rise and inflation in the cost of food is further complicating the situation and making it even more difficult for people to find their next meal. Many struggles financially to even buy a loaf of bread. Women and children are the most vulnerable as they are 75% of the displaced population.
In additional to screening for and treating malnutrition, Global UOSSM worked on distribution of nutritious food to improve the health of affected families, prevent malnutrition, and boost immunity of the people, especially the most vulnerable, during COVID-19 crisis.
Where we work
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Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Evaluation documents
Download evaluation reportsNumber of children who have access to healthcare
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Age groups, Health, Victims and oppressed people, Economically disadvantaged people
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Number of children, under the age of 17, who have access to UOSSM healthcare, mental health and protection centers in northern Syria and Turkey. Over 250,000 child received services at UOSSM centers.
Number of children receiving medical services
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Age groups, Health, Victims and oppressed people, Economically disadvantaged people
Related Program
Primary Health Care
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Number of children, under the age of 17, received primary healthcare (PHC) services at UOSSM PHC centers and mobile clinics in Syria. Number of children received secondary/tertiary services 190,000
Number of people who received clinical mental health care
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Victims and oppressed people, Economically disadvantaged people, Children and youth, Women and girls, Adults
Related Program
Mental Health Care and Psychosocial Support
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Number of people received mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services, including, Special Needs Rehabilitation (SNR) for children with special needs, at UOSSM centers in Syria and Turkey.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Our goals are to save lives, enhance access to quality healthcare services, improve the health, mental health and well-being of people affected by crisis, work with the local communities to build the necessary healthcare infrastructure and capacity of local healthcare workers to improve healthcare delivery, empower the affected local communities, in particular the most vulnerable, women and children, and bring awareness about the crisis to the global community to help improve the health and well-being of those that we serve.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
UOSSM organizations implements a joint program strategy to better address the needs of the people and communities being served. This joint programming allows for (1) addressing the needs of the communities strategically and effectively, (2) delivering uniform high-quality services across all the programs provided, and (3) yet allows for flexibility depending on the need of the community and infrastructure available, to be able to provide sustainable, culturally appropriate care and programming.
Among the program strategies used to achieve our goals:
1. Supporting the local efforts inside Syria to help sustain, strengthen and rebuild the healthcare system and services inside Syria, by working with local councils and health directorates to rehabilitate existing healthcare facilities or establish new facilities in areas of need
2. Strengthening and building the capacity of local communities through the provision of specialized training to local staff and healthcare professionals, and awareness sessions to the general public
3. Working closely on the ground with the affected communities and reaching the most vulnerable
4. Facilitating and improving access to different type of health and health-related services, including primary healthcare, secondary and tertiary healthcare, maternity and pediatric care, nutrition, mental health, psychosocial support, special needs rehabilitation for children with special needs, protection, physiotherapy and rehabilitation
5. Focusing on mental health and psychosocial support services to improve the psychosocial well-being and resilience of the vulnerable people affected by the Syrian crisis, in addition to focusing on adaptation and cohesion of the Syrian refugees in Turkey to enhance social integration among the refugees and the Turkish communities
6. Enhancing protection services for the most vulnerable, women and children, and empowering women so they can make a positive contribution to society
7. Improving the referral system among the healthcare facilities and supporting the Ambulance (EMT) system
8. Providing emergency and medical relief, including hospital support, healthcare professionals support, COVID19 response, and proactive measures to prevent malnutrition through the provision of nutritious food
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
UOSSM boasts of a hard-working staff that adhere to the highest level of ethics and standards, and who firmly believe in the cause and the organization. The staff has a passion to help these people that have suffered so much and will do whatever is possible within their capacity to achieve these goals. With this type of commitment nothing is impossible.
In addition, we believe in extensive community outreach led by our local staff and volunteers, and in building strong local partnerships to help meet the needs of the communities we work with and serve
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
UOSSM has led the way by taking new initiatives early on in the Syrian crisis to find constantly evolving solutions for the growing health problems in Syria, working closely with local communities, the most vulnerable, national and international organizations.
Since 2012, UOSSM has delivered a wide range of healthcare services, training, and educational sessions to millions of affected people by the crisis inside Syria and Syrian refugees in Turkey.
The Board of Directors – predominately healthcare professionals – and many staff members, have dedicated their time away from their families and donated more than 150,000 volunteer hours to guide and advance the healthcare programs provided by UOSSM.
In Turkey, UOSSM Turkey is currently the major service provider of specialized MHPSS services and the only provider of SNR services to children with special needs in Arabic.
UOSSM’s hallmark initiatives during the Syrian crisis include:
1. UOSSM Bab Al-Hawa Hospital, the largest referral emergency & specialty hospital in north Syria in 2012
2. Physiotherapy and rehabilitation centers in north Syria and Turkey since 2012
3. Urology and bladder rehabilitation center, the only one of its kind in north Syria
4. Specialized warzone medical training center at Bab Al-Hawa in north Syria since 2012 in response to the urgent need for building the capacity of remaining health workers in the region
5. Primary healthcare centers, maternity units and mobile clinics across Syria since 2013
6. Specialized mental health and psychosocial support services in Turkey and Syria; with the first MHPSS center in Turkey late 2013,and in north Syria early 2014 with Tele-Psychiatry support; in addition to the establishment of the only inpatient acute mental health unit in north Syria.
7. Data collection and analysis initiative (Evidence-based funding) in Syria in 2013
8. Solar system initiative at UOSSM Bab Al-Hawa Hospital (2017) and Aqrabat Hospital in north Syria
In 2020, with the COVID-19 crisis, UOSSM has focused its efforts to protect the healthcare providers and the most vulnerable, living in crowded displacement camps, from the threat of COVID-19, while continuing to provide primary health and mental care services along with life-saving aid. UOSSM responded to COVID-19 by, supporting primary health care centers, establishing and operating community-based isolation centers, sterilizing displacement camps, distributing hygiene kits, distributing nutritious food, establishing a distance-learning center, distributing educational materials about COVID-19 in areas of displacement, and providing training on COVID-19 to medical and administrative personnel.
With our strategic planning and capacity to respond quickly to crisis on the ground, we hope to continue to grow and improve our work and programs, working closely with local communities and partners to better meeting the needs of the population.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
UOSSM USA
Board of directorsas of 01/04/2024
Dr. Khaula Sawah
UOSSM USA
Term: 2022 -
Monzer Yazji
UOSSM USA
Ahmad Abo Kayass
UOSSM USA
Hassan Chahadeh
UOSSM USA
Ashraf Traboulsi
UOSSM USA
Khaula Sawah
UOSSM USA
Maram Khabbaz
UOSSM USA
Linda Yanez
UOSSM USA
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 09/04/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.