Free Women’s Foundation offers health and vocational courses in Hasakah

The Free Women’s Foundation in Syria continues to implement a range of sustainable health, educational and vocational projects aimed at supporting women and children and strengthening their economic, intellectual and health capacities within society.

Previously known as the Free Women’s Endowment, the foundation changed its name following a broad merger. It seeks to strengthen its role through a network of centers across the Jazira and Kobani regions. Its vision focuses on providing free medical services, organizing vocational, sports and educational courses, and expanding awareness-raising lectures on various aspects of daily life.

In terms of healthcare and services in Hasakah, the foundation’s Ari Health Center stands out as one of its main facilities providing free medical care and health awareness services for women and children.

Explaining the center’s work, Khowla Qawas, head of the foundation’s health department in Hasakah, said the center began operating in 2020 and provides free specialized care through three main departments: pediatrics, women’s health and physical alternative medicine.

Khowla explained that the center operates throughout the week, allocating three days to women and three days to children. A pediatrician is available on the days designated for children to examine patients and provide them with free medication. The women’s health department also receives female patients for examinations and provides them with free medication.

“The center brings patients together in the morning and offers them health awareness lectures supervised by gynecologists and pediatricians, alongside alternative medicine specialists. The lectures cover topics related to women’s and children’s diseases, as well as other illnesses affecting patients,” she added.

To mark October, internationally recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Ari Center launched an awareness campaign running throughout the month. The campaign aims to strengthen women’s health awareness and highlight the importance of early breast cancer detection and its role in increasing the chances of successful treatment.

A Human-Centered Approach

Khowla Qawas explained that what distinguishes the Ari Center is its approach to treating patients. Its care extends beyond providing treatment to include asking about their illnesses and medications and creating a comfortable environment for women and children while they receive treatment or attend awareness lectures.

The health department administrator at the Free Women’s Foundation in Syria noted that the alternative medicine department provides services to women and children, treating skin conditions and other illnesses. It also offers cupping therapy, which some patients seek to relieve fatigue.

The alternative medicine department at the Ari Center aims to reduce reliance on conventional medications as much as possible, while emphasizing that any alternative treatment should be appropriate to the patient’s health condition.

Nursing Training

Alongside the services provided by the Ari Center, the foundation organizes training courses supervised by a qualified nurse. Participants receive practical training in nursing and are awarded certificates upon completion.

The foundation also coordinates with hospitals and clinics in the city to place trainees and provide them with employment opportunities.

Taekwondo and Physical Fitness

As part of the educational and sports projects implemented by the Free Women’s Foundation, Rima Ibrahim Mohammed, who oversees the women’s taekwondo and physical fitness project, spoke about the activities the center offers to children and women, including English-language classes.

Rima explained that the foundation works to develop the skills of children and women and provide them with educational opportunities. She noted that with schools reopening and children returning to classes, the courses had been organized into morning and evening sessions to accommodate their schedules and allow them to benefit from educational and sports activities.

She explained that the aim of training children in taekwondo was to strengthen their bodies, develop their thinking, help them channel negative energy, boost their self-confidence and teach them respect. She added that the training is supervised by a specialized coach who holds certificates from Korea and a black belt.

The women’s physical fitness department, meanwhile, organizes morning training sessions, with particular attention to women experiencing certain health problems. The sessions aim to help them move their bodies and improve their physical fitness and are offered for nominal fees.

Vocational Projects

For her part, Gulistan Abdo, a member of the Free Women’s Foundation in Hasakah, spoke about the projects implemented by the foundation, noting that they include sewing, nursing, hairdressing and computer courses, all offered at nominal fees.

Gulistan explained that the sewing project begins with coordination with the communes to identify women interested in learning the trade. The participants are then brought together in the city’s neighborhoods, and sewing machines are transported to the local commune, where the women receive training until they complete the course.

Upon completing the training, participants receive certificates. The foundation then seeks to coordinate with institutions, factories and workshops that need women with sewing skills.

Driving Lessons

On driving courses, Gulistan explained that the fees are kept nominal to enable the widest possible number of women to benefit.

The hairdressing project, meanwhile, brings women together at the center to teach them the basics of the profession. The aim is to enable them to use their newly acquired skills to find work or further develop their abilities through training and by following educational materials online.

Developing Skills to Meet Institutional Needs

The foundation also offers courses covering basic computer skills, focusing on those required for archival work, given the need for qualified personnel to perform these tasks in many institutions.

Speaking about the challenges facing the foundation, Gulistan Abdo stressed that limited resources and support, along with power outages and rising fuel prices, were hindering its ability to continue operating and carry out activities as required.

She explained that the center faces frequent generator outages and a lack of regular electricity, disrupting many of its activities, particularly because several of the vocational courses and training programs it offers require electricity.

She added that rising fuel prices also make travel between the city’s neighborhoods more difficult, limiting the foundation’s ability to reach women who wish to benefit from its projects.

Gulistan concluded by appealing to the relevant authorities and supporting organizations to assist the Free Women’s Foundation so it can continue its work.

a.k

ANHA