 “The Jordanians are an amazingly hospitable people who are coping with a significant refugee population.” Dr. Gilbert Burnham, co-director, Center for Refugee and Disaster Response
According to estimates, approximately 500,000 Iraqis have fled into Jordan since 2003. While some Iraqis in Jordan are relatively self-sufficient, others fled with few resources or find their resources depleted after years away from home. Iraqi refugees are not settled in camps, but are dispersed among the Jordanian population. The UN, the Jordanian government, and various NGOs have been working to provide health and education to the displaced Iraqi population. The Center for Refugee and Disaster Response has been working with International Medical Corps (IMC) to support clinics, operated by Jordan Red Crescent and Caritas, that serve Iraqi populations. CRDR’s Dr. Gilbert Burnham was asked to help design a Health Information System that provides information on the population’s health problems and needs. The system has been well received, and The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) information personnel described it as an extremely impressive information system.  Dr. Shannon Doocy, an assistant professor at CRDR, also worked in collaboration with IMC to conduct a study of needs and satisfaction among Iraqi care seekers in Jordan. The survey was implemented in January 2008 by IMC and included Iraqi physician-interviewers and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health students. The study showed that the cost of health services was a significant barrier to health care and the population had substantial unmet needs, most notably a lack of access to mental health services.
CRDR will continue to work with IMC to provide support for programs that benefit the displaced Iraqi population in Jordan. In summer 2008 at the request of UNICEF, CRDR will conduct a nationwide survey of Iraqis in conjunction with the Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Communication Programs (CCP). Findings from the survey will be used by UN agencies, the Jordanian government and NGOs to plan and develop programs that will better meet the needs of displaced Iraqis in Jordan. | 
