When the pandemic hit in 2020, the mental health crisis among healthcare workers became headline news all over the world. But long before COVID-19, humanitarian healthcare workers have been working right at the edges of active conflict. Their daily work is steeped in the sights, sounds, and tragic realities of war—and that proximity comes with a deep psychological cost.

Although great care is taken to ensure the physical safety of our global staff, they are exposed to a variety of environmental and psychological stressors while on the job. Staff can regularly experience things like:

• Recurring alarms or alerts via radio, cell phone, or other media that danger is present or anticipated
• Daily exposure to life-threatening illnesses, injuries, and death
• Daily security concerns in unstable social/political situations
• Extreme working conditions (temperatures, insects/animals, lack of ventilation and sanitation, etc.)
• Daily interactions with people who have been traumatized

It’s no surprise, then, that studies have shown humanitarian aid workers to be more likely to develop job-related mental health challenges like depression, anxiety, burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and posttraumatic stress disorder.¹

In addition to the daily stresses that staff face providing healthcare to seriously ill people, staff like Salma Salah are also juggling worries about the safety of their own families.

Salma works as a community health volunteer for Medical Teams living in Gedaref, Sudan with her husband, 5 children, and elderly parents. Salma’s work with Medical Teams is their only source of income, so the pressure is high for her to show up every day to work despite the constant uncertainty, fear, and pressure that comes with working close to an active combat zone.

“The war here in Sudan [has] generated a very harsh situation. The health system has almost collapsed since there is a huge gap. In addition to that, we are expecting an attack maybe anytime, and that puts us under big pressure because we need to make an evacuation plan for our family. So, we are working under stress that brings extreme concern about our families.”

Just imagine it… 

Caring for patients each day with the low, ever-present hum of military drones thrumming in your ears, knowing that they’re on their way to cause more destruction.  

That is certainly true for 31-year-old Medical Teams pharmacist Aliona Kotelna, who is raising her two children alone and working at the local makeshift pharmacy while her husband is away fighting in the conflict.  

“This has been the most difficult year of my life,” she admits. 

And still, she shows up at the pharmacy 3 days a week and spends her mornings in the small room taking orders and getting critical medications into the hands of those who need them most.

Staff like Aliona could very well be hearing this as they go about their daily tasks…

They may ask themselves: 

Where is that headed? Somewhere where my loved ones live?  

An hour later, a blaring alert comes over their cell phone. There’s been another bombing. Now, they wonder: 

Where did it hit? Maybe I should call my mother. She has my kids today.  

This is the daily reality when you work in a country steeped in war. 

A 2024 study published by Cambridge University Press surveyed 178 psychosocial support workers in Ukraine–60% of them screened positive for burnout, 38% for PTSD, and 11% for current suicidal ideation.²

It’s no wonder that medical and mental health staff are struggling to provide services to those who have been traumatized by war. Many of them are crumbling under the chronic stress of 3 years of unrelenting violence, political instability, and chaos.

Our staff also includes people who have been victims of war themselves. After fleeing her home and landing in an IDP camp in Sudan, nurse Mazahir wanted to find purpose amid her family’s struggles. 

Since she’d been forced to leave her nursing license paperwork behind during her escape, Medical Teams helped her obtain new documents and she enthusiastically began working in the camp clinic. Medical Teams relied on Mazahir’s expertise to help provide hygiene seminars and staff a rehydration station in her community during a dangerous diarrhea outbreak. 

“I feel very good now because I can help needy people,” Mazahir shares. “Without Medical Teams, I would be struggling to find a job and support my family.”

Despite Mazahir’s incredible bravery, resilience, and optimism, there is no denying the chronic stress that our staff are under day after day. 

In the case of Mazahir, traumatized and sick families in the camps are being treated by those who have been traumatized themselves.  

Miraculously—our staff continues to show up under these kinds of conditions and provide not only medical care—but exceptional medical care. Medical care with an encouraging smile. Medical care that treats the whole person. Medical care that saves lives and lifts spirits that have been broken by war.  

Recent cuts to US funding have forced many humanitarian organizations to reduce staff and resources dedicated to maintaining staff well-being and mental health. It is critical that supporters like you step in to fill the growing funding gap so that these incredible men and women who save lives daily have the support they need to do their jobs. 

They deserve to know that we have their backs, and that their mental health is our priority. 

Tekabe Zewdie, Human Resource and Administrative Manager in our Ethiopia Office, describes how critical it is for Medical Teams to continue our commitment to caring for our international staff:  

In my role, I’ve seen staff push themselves beyond limits — emotionally, physically, and mentally. Many feel guilty for needing a break. But here’s the truth: sustainable impact depends on sustainable people.

We now encourage staff to schedule wellness breaks — short walks, quiet time, or calls with loved ones — especially after field missions or difficult reports. No apology needed. No explanation required. 

CLICK HERE to make a gift that lets our staff know that we are behind them 100%, and that we are so, so grateful that they continue to show up at their job sites each day—whether that’s a makeshift clinic, a tent, or simple a stool in an open field. 

Even there, healing and loving care take place, thanks to them. 

¹https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7909203/

²https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/disaster-medicine-and-public-health-preparedness/article/abs/helping-the-helpers-mental-health-challenges-of-psychosocial-support-workers-during-the-russianukrainian-war/2B430AF86379C1CA1824D7F76B0481BD

Amanda Wilkinson | Copywriter & Brand Specialist

Amanda joined Medical Teams at the very end of 2024 and loves being part of the creative engine of the Marketing and Development Team. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Hollins University and a BA and English and Theatre Arts from Illinois Wesleyan University. She is the recipient of the Gertrude Claytor Prize in Poetry from the Academy of American Poets, and her poetry collection Little Human Relics was published in 2016.  

In addition to her writing work, Amanda is passionate about maternal health and is a certified Perinatal Mental Health Peer Support Specialist as well as a Certified Lactation Specialist. She is a fierce advocate for maternal mental health, infertility, and birth trauma, and enjoys working with mamas to provide support and resources as they walk along their journey of motherhood.