IDLEB, Syrian Arab Republic – “I have personally experienced the dire consequences of conflict on health care,” said Dr. Ikram Habbush, director of the Idleb Maternity Hospital in northwest Syria.

Dr. Habbush is the first female obstetrician to lead the facility, which is supported by UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, and operated by the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS). She’s also one of many resilient female health workers who have dedicated themselves to ensuring the well-being of Syria’s women and girls despite 13 years of conflict, mass displacement, earthquakes and roiling insecurity.

“My aim is to create positive change within my community, and to safeguard the lives of women and girls in one of the world's most crisis-affected regions,” she told UNFPA.

Widespread instability and severe underfunding mean that more than one in three health facilities in Syria cannot operate at full capacity. The rest are often undersupplied, overwhelmed and in many cases unable to support patients facing dire health emergencies. In northwest Syria, this has led to a tragic number of pregnant women confronting obstetric emergencies and losing their lives, many while being transferred between hospitals lacking crucial supplies such as medicine and blood.