TY - JOUR T1 - COVID-19 and non-communicable diseases in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: the need for a syndemics approach to data reporting and healthcare delivery JF - BMJ Global Health JO - BMJ Global Health DO - 10.1136/bmjgh-2021-006189 VL - 6 IS - 6 SP - e006189 AU - Ghiwa Nassereddine AU - Samia Habli AU - Slim Slama AU - Kasturi Sen AU - Anthony Rizk AU - Abla M Sibai Y1 - 2021/06/01 UR - http://gh.bmj.com/content/6/6/e006189.abstract N2 - Summary boxAs elsewhere, health services designed for the management and treatment of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have been repurposed to respond to COVID-19 in many countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR).Many countries of the EMR are distinctly challenged by compromised healthcare systems, prolonged political unrest, conflict and humanitarian crisis, poor vital registration systems, suboptimal reporting and dearth in publicly available data.COVID-19 and NCDs are a syndemic—their synergistic relationship leaves people living with NCDs at a higher risk of developing severe COVID-19 complications, and patients who recover from COVID-19 are more likely to develop long-term chronic conditions.In the EMR, it is now more imperative than ever to recognise the interconnectedness of communicable diseases and NCDs, build stronger public health systems to achieve universal health coverage and establish reliable surveillance systems.Working long-term and recognising how COVID-19 and NCDs are syndemically interlocked conditions may be the first step towards developing the nuanced approaches that are needed to more comprehensively protect society’s vulnerable populations.As of 30 April 2021, the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR), home to nearly 700 million people across 22 diverse countries, has reported 9 109 162 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 182 654 cumulative deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.1 Pandemic response in the EMR is complicated by compromised healthcare systems, prolonged conflicts and humanitarian crisis, and suboptimal reporting and transparency in many countries of the region.2 Consequently, COVID-19 incidence rates have been uneven, fluctuating from less than 1000 confirmed cases per million population in Sudan, Syria, Somalia and Yemen to more than 40 000 confirmed cases per million population in Lebanon, Qatar and Bahrain. Up to this point in the pandemic, the five countries hardest hit with cumulative COVID-19 deaths per capita have been Lebanon, Iran, Tunisia, Palestine and Jordan and with the highest overall cumulative deaths have been … ER -