1. This presentation is specifically designed to introduce MSF’s work to young audience. It is appropriate for teachers or other adults working with children in primary schools, and those in the early stages of secondary school.
We have included some notes throughout in order to assist you in your presentation.

2. Who are MSF?
Médecins Sans Frontières (pronounced Medsan-song-Fronti-air) means ‘Doctors Without Borders’
We are the world’s leading independent medical humanitarian aid organisation.
Despite our French name, doctors, nurses and engineers from all over the world work together for MSF to provide medical care for people wherever they need it.
This could be for many different reasons, including:
Wars
Natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods
Diseases including Malaria, Tuberculosis and HIV/Aids
Famine and Malnutrition
Explaining some key terms:
Being a medical ‘humanitarian’ organisation means that we provide medical care to people who really need to see a doctor the most. Because everybody can get sick!
Malaria is a very serious disease that is spread by mosquitoes. Mosquitoes who have the Malaria germ bite humans and spread these germs into the person’s blood system. It affects millions of children and adults in countries with tropical climates because mosquitoes like to live in hot places. Mosquito bed nets and sprays can help stop mosquitoes getting too close to humans so they can’t bite them. There is medication available that can help to cure infected people.
Tuberculosis or TB is a very dangerous disease of the lungs that causes people to cough a lot. The infection is spread through the air by people who have the disease coughing, sneezing or spitting. There are medicines that can help people suffering with TB, but it is difficult to prevent.
HIV (Human immunodeficiency virus) is an infection that causes the body’s natural defense system (the immune system) to stop working properly. Inside everybody’s blood there are little ‘germ fighters’ which fight off germs, people with HIV have weak germ fighters in their blood so they find it hard to fight off the germs that make them ill. This means that people with HIV get sick more often than other people. HIV eventually leads to AIDS (Acquired immune deficiency syndrome) which is the final stage of the HIV virus when the germ fighters have got very tired and often fall asleep. This means the patient’s body finds it very difficult to fight off illnesses and they often will have developed a number of illnesses together. There is no cure for HIV/AIDS but if patients take the right medicines it can help them to live healthier for longer.
MSF provides its medical care for these and other diseases to adults and children around the world free or charge.

3. Where do we work?
MAP OF WHERE WE CURRENTLY ARE
We have projects in over 60 countries across Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East

4. Who does MSF treat?
MSF treats people who urgently need medical care.
It doesn’t matter to MSF doctors and nurses what these people look like, where they come from or who they are.
All that is important is that they are human beings (just like me and you) who need to see a doctor.
They can be any gender, colour, religion, age or race.
This is what it means when we say we are ‘humanitarian’.
© Yoanis Menge/MSF [Democratic Republic Congo] 2009
We work around the world to treat people in the greatest medical need and those often forgotten by others
© xxxxxxx [200x]

5. MSF helps people suffering from many different diseases and illnesses
Here an MSF medic is vaccinating a child against measles in Afghanistan
Prompt the children to think about their own vaccinations.
Explain that in countries such as Ireland all children are provided with a set of essential vaccinations throughout childhood to help protect them against dangerous childhood diseases.
In some parts of the world, children do not always have these essential vaccinations available at their local health centres.
This is why MSF doctors and nurses help vaccinate children in many countries around the world.

6. An MSF doctor is giving emergency treatment to sick children during a Cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe
Cholera is caused by little germs getting in to drinking water.
When people drink this dirty water the germs get inside their body and make them feel very sick.
To make people better they will need to be ‘rehydrated’ which includes drinking lots of water.
It is very easy to treat cholera, but it must be done very quickly.

7. An MSF nurse counts the correct number of pills for HIV positive patients in Myanmar
MSF provides essential medicines to HIV positive patients in the areas where we work.
These medicines will help patients to stay healthy for longer even though they are HIV positive (keeping their ‘germ fighters’ in the blood strong).
© Chris de Bode/MSF [Myanmar] 2006

8. MSF treats thousands of children with malnutrition.
This child is being examined by an MSF medic
Malnutrition is essentially caused by children not getting enough of the right kinds of food which have essential nutrients in them.
It is very important that children all around the world eat the right kinds of food to keep themselves healthy.
This picture shows a child being examined using a MUAC (mid-upper arm circumference) band.
If the band shows green in the small window then we know that the child is healthy (and most children in Ireland would be in this category).
The colours yellow – orange – red show the severity of the level of malnutrition.
If you are interested to explore this topic further, we have samples of these bands available in the Irish office that we can send to schools.
© Dieter Telemans [Kenya] 2006

9. This child in Ethiopia is eating a special food supplement rich in vitamins to help him gain weight
This child is eating something called ‘plumpy nut’ which is a special food supplement that tastes similar to peanut butter.
It helps children to put on weight while also receiving the correct nutritional balance.
© Juan Carlos Tomasi / MSF [Ethiopia] 2008

10. MSF helps people after natural disasters
Here is an outdoor hospital ward treating people after the earthquake in Haiti 2010
Many children may have been aware of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
MSF was already working in Haiti before the earthquake, three of our hospitals were very badly damaged and some of the MSF doctors and nurses were hurt.
We had to set up emergency hospitals very quickly so that MSF doctors could treat those people needing medical attention in the aftermath of the earthquake. The doctors and nurses were very busy indeed.
© Julie Remy [Haiti] 2010
© MSF [Haiti] 2010

11. An MSF water and sanitation specialist is providing clean water after floods in Mozambique
During a flood local water supplies (such as a village wells) can get mixed up with dirty water.
This means that it is no longer safe to drink this water as it is full of germs which can cause diseases like cholera.
This MSF engineer is filling a rubber ‘bladder’, which is a bit like a giant water balloon, with clean water ready for people to drink.
© Benjamin Bechet / Odessa [Mozambique] 2007

12. MSF often works in war zones
This child is talking to a MSF doctor in Gaza
MSF treats grown ups and children in dangerous places all over the world.
In many war zones, MSF offers counselling to people who have lived through war.
Talking about the difficult things that they have seen can help make people feel better.
© Valerie Babize/MSF [Gaza] 2008

13. MSF also helps people who do not have access to health care Here MSF volunteers are providing supplies to refugees in France
Many people can not easily access health care which means that they are not able to see a doctor when they are sick.
This is the case in many parts of the world, even if they are in rich countries.
© Dragan Lekic /Libre arbitre [France] 2009

14. These people are in search of a better life in Europe
MSF also help people who are crossing the Mediterranean Sea in unseaworthy boats from Africa and the Middle East
These people are in search of a better life in Europe
MSF currently operates three Search and Rescue boats in the Mediterranean Sea; the MY Phoenix, the Bourbon Argos and the Dignity I.
These boats will spend the summer months from May to October travelling the Mediterranean in search of people who might be in distress, to prevent loss of life at sea from drowning.
In 2014 alone, more than 3,400 people are thought to have died during the crossing; already in 2015, more than 2,000 people have been left to drown.
Since it began operations in May, 2015, MSF has rescued over 9,335 people over the course of 54 operations, including many women and children.
© Dragan Lekic /Libre arbitre [France] 2009

15. A video explaining the reasons behind MSF’s work in the Mediterranean Sea, where they operate a search and rescue mission using three boats
This slide might be too detailed for younger children
© Dragan Lekic /Libre arbitre [France] 2009

16. Independence
One of the most important things about MSF is that we are independent. Almost all of our money comes from kind members of the public.
This means we don’t have to wait for money from governments and we can make our own decisions about who to help.
This allows us to act quickly to treat those people who most need medical help.
Depending on the age and ability of the children and the purpose of your presentation, this slide might not be necessary.

17. This means we are often in the newspapers and on the television
Speaking Out
Have the children ever spotted MSF or other charities on the television or in the news?
We try to make sure that people all around the world know about the medical work we do and the problems our patients face in the countries where we work
This means we are often in the newspapers and on the television

18. MSF in Ireland
Médecins Sans Frontières has 21 offices worldwide and MSF Ireland is one of them.
MSF Ireland was established in Dublin in 2006.
We support MSF’s field work through:
raising money to pay for our projects all around the world
finding doctors, nurses, engineers and other support staff who can work abroad
talking to the Irish public about our work and about the patients we treat
providing specialist medical advice to the teams working on our missions all around the world.

19. The MSF Ireland team!
We are not normally such a formal looking office!

20. How you can get involved....
Organise a fundraising or awareness raising event with your friends or school
Tell others about MSF
Make a donation to MSF or suggest a donation instead of a birthday present
Organise a visit to your school by an MSF speaker
Become an MSF volunteer when you’re older!
Do the children have any of their own ideas as to how they would like to get involved?
Let us know if they have any good suggestions.

21. How to contact us or find out more...
Visit our website:
us:
Phone us: (Dublin Office)
Find us on Facebook:
Follow us on Twitter:
Follow us on YouTube:

22. Thank You!
A thank you video from MSF members around the world