Two refugees look out over the Mediterranean Sea above Ventimiglia, Italy. December 2020.
In Italy we are working to support migrants and people on the move in several areas, in collaboration with local health authorities.

In Palermo, Sicily, we are working in a clinic to provide medical and mental health care for migrants and refugees who survived intentional physical violence and torture in their country of origin or during their journey to Italy.

In Rome, we support vulnerable migrant women living in marginalised neighbourhoods and informal settlements to access sexual and reproductive health services, working in several family clinics alongside MoH staff, conducting health promotion activities and offering psychological care.

During the summer months, in the middle of the year, we provide medical and psychological support to people landing in the region of Calabria, identifying migrants and refugees who are medically vulnerable and need further treatment.

Our activities in 2021 in Italy


Data and information from the International Activity Report 2021

MSF IN ITALY IN 2021 In Italy, Doctors Without Borders aims to address gaps in care for the most vulnerable and marginalised people, such as migrants and those excluded from the national health system.
Italy_map_IAR_2021

In Rome, we launched a new project focused on facilitating access to sexual and reproductive healthcare for migrant women living in marginalised neighbourhoods, squats and informal settlements. Our teams work alongside Ministry of Health staff, providing family planning and obstetric consultations, as well as cervical cancer screening and support for victims of sexual violence. We also run health promotion activities and cultural mediation services in collaboration with local authorities. 

In May, we opened a project in Palermo to improve the provision of care for victims of intentional violence and torture. The project has an interdisciplinary approach, offering medical, psychological, social and legal assistance, as well as health promotion and outreach activities to identify potential patients. 

In both locations, we implemented activities to tackle COVID-19. In Rome, our teams supported people living in squats and informal settlements, ensuring they had access to the relevant preventive measures, treatment and vaccinations. We also advocated for the need to remove the administrative barriers that hinder access to vaccinations for unregistered migrants living in Italy. 

In mid-2021, during the summer in Lampedusa, the main landing site for migrants crossing from North Africa, we supported the provision of first aid and the identification of people with vulnerabilities – such as victims of torture and severe violence – on arrival. Our staff also worked in the migrant hotspot on the island, offering care for fragile and vulnerable patients who needed specific care and follow-up. In addition, we ensured patients were followed up in the quarantine centres in Agrigento. 

IN 2021

 
Italy

Search and Rescue: 11 days after the first rescue, the Sea-Watch 4 is allocated a port of safety

Latest News 4 Sep 2020
 
Italy

EU states use COVID-19 to shirk search and rescue obligations as MSF ends Ocean Viking partnership

Press Release 17 Apr 2020
 
Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic

Italy: “A new approach to public health, the big change needed to fight COVID-19”

Latest News 31 Mar 2020
 
Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic

“Medical staff working beyond limits, in the first COVID-19 epicentre in Italy”

Latest News 31 Mar 2020
 
Italy

“Our priority is to protect hospital staff” in Codogno, where COVID-19 began in Italy

Latest News 20 Mar 2020
 
Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic

Coronavirus: What is MSF doing?

Patient and Staff Stories 17 Mar 2020