In 2015, the World Health Organization established the Attacks on Health Care (AHC) initiative. This initiative is a priority of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme. The vision of the initiative is that essential lifesaving health services must be provided to emergency-affected populations unhindered by any form of violence or obstruction. The Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care (SSA) is one of the outputs of this initiative. The purpose of the WHO Surveillance System for Attacks on Health Care (SSA) is to systematically collect and make available data on attacks on health care, and their immediate impact on health care in countries facing emergencies.

Definition of attack

WHO defines an attack as any act of verbal or physical violence, threat of violence or other psychological violence, or obstruction that interferes with the availability, access and delivery of curative and/or preventive health services.

Criteria for determining the level of certainty of an attack on health care

Rumour

• Social media post (Twitter or Facebook) OR
• Hearsay OR
• Form submission from anonymous source

Possible

• Media report from local or international news source OR
• Communication from an organization not defined in the partner group that an attack has been made against them

Probable

• One eyewitness accounts of the attack as told to one or more SSA partner OR
• Two secondary accounts (not eyewitnesses) of the attack as told to one or more SSA partner(s)

Confirmed

• Communication from an SSA partner that an attack has been made against them OR
• One eyewitness account by someone from the SSA partner group OR
• Two eyewitness accounts of the attack as told to one or more SSA partner(s) OR
• Types and sources of information that would be graded as ‘Probable’ PLUS-A photo, video or satellite image of the attack or its aftermath, or an international media or police report that provides clear evidence of the attack