Adverse health consequences of war on civilians

This presentation will summarize the profound adverse health consequences of war on civilians and what public health workers can do to minimize these consequences. Increasingly, war-associated morbidity and mortality affect civilian populations, in part because civilians are increasingly targeted during war. Much civilian morbidity and mortality during war results from damage to medical care and public health facilities and, more broadly, to the health-supporting infrastructure of society and the physical and social environments. Forced migration during war accounts for large numbers of refugees and internally displaced persons who are vulnerable to many health and safety threats. Examples of the adverse health consequences of war on civilians will be presented from the current wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere. Public health workers can minimize the health consequences of war on civilians in several ways, including providing medical care and public health services to victims of war, documenting and communicating about health consequences to civilians, promoting human rights and medical neutrality during war, and helping to bring about a cessation of armed conflict. We can also help create a world without war.