Support IDA blood bank and Thalassemia center as well as the internal department of Wasim Maaz Hospital in Azaz, Aleppo governorate The resilience of local communities and the health system in northwest Syria has weakened considerably during the last few months with the relentless military offensive by the Government of Syria and its allies, which began in December 2019. This has forcibly displaced around 1 million people towards the closed Turkish border in the north, with gt68 health facilities attacked between April 2019 and February 2020 according to recent research (attached with title COVID 19 response in northwest Syria). The project aims at supporting IDA blood bank and Thalassemia center B0204072 as well as the internal department of Wasim Maaz Hospital in Aleppo governorate, Azaz district, Azaz sub-district, Azaz community C1654 (HeRAMS code: !B0204006). The blood bank in Azaz supports 10 health facilities in the area with blood bags. The Sphere Standards for Blood Collection and Laboratory Practice for Blood and Blood Products will be taken into account and complied with during the implementation of the activities. Three testing procedures will be used to ensure the safety of the blood collected. The maximum storage period (33 days) is continuously monitored, infected, or expired blood is disposed of in existing incinerators and medical waste disposal pits. A loss of 12% of the blood donated can be expected, which must be classified as unsafe and destroyed. A total of 4 blood products will be generated: Erythrocyte concentrate, blood serum, platelets, and whole blood. In Azaz district and surrounding areas, there are 
The two facilities are ongoing and active and play a key role in supporting IDPs in camps and the Host community population in the whole area of northern Aleppo. 
Azaz area, where the two proposed facilities are located, are considered safe areas which make them a resort for the newly displaced people. Thus, supporting the proposed facilities will be a response to the acute health needs in the areas.
The internal department in the hospital will be supported, both inpatient and outpatient wards. Through this project, medical consultations in general medicine, endocrinology, cardiology, gastroenterology, and hematology, as well as medicine distribution and referral services from Syria to Turkey and within Syria, will be delivered to people in need, focusing on the most vulnerable groups, including elderly persons, reproductive-aged women, and chronically-ill patients.
To better respond to COVID-19 and for waste management and disposal, IDA has developed a list of items that were procured for most of IDA health facilities. IDA follows specific guidelines for waste management and disposal.
In fact, the blood bank of Azaz is an existing facility that was supported by a donor and the grant has ended. IDA had been reporting to the health cluster on the Blood Bank of A'zaz. To improve the quality of delivered services, and due to the damage of some devices, IDA identified a set of devices and consumables to be procured under this grant if it was approved. procuring some of these items, not all of them, will jeopardize the quality of delivered services. IDA has developed a COVID-19 response plan of IDA that will be implemented across IDA health facilities in northern Syria. The response plan was derived from WHO taskforce response plan with similar objectives. IDA has already communicated with several partners and donors to fund the COVID-19 preparedness and response plan of IDA. The target facilities in this project are already covered by the necessary equipment and materials for COVID-19 PRP. IDA PRP for COVID-19 was shared with the health cluster previously.
According to the recent estimations from northern Aleppo, the number of registered Thalassemia patients was 108 in March 2020 who will be target by this project