Abstract

Background: The objectives of this paper are to (1) describe the urban health study, a new research initiative on the health of populations living in poor neighborhoods in the outskirts of Beirut and (2) provide some findings on the links between impovrishment, social support and population health in this urban context.

Approach: The study consists of ethnographic studies and a cross-sectional survey of some 3000 households living in two impovrished and rapidly changing Lebanese communities and one Palestinian refugee camp. Data from women, adolescents and elderly persons were collected by face to face interviews. Engagement of the communities studies in the research process and other unique features of the study will be highlighted. Preliminary results from several ongoing studies will be presented.

Lessons Learned: The main findings show that poverty is widespread in these urban communities, and the population there is suffering from high levels of psychological distress. Social fragmentation and distrust is also widespread. Despite the poverty, however, several population health indicators show that the populations are rather advantaged in terms of health, risk behavior and access to services.

The paper argues that the health advantage is mainly due to the active involvement of NGOs in providing free or otherwise subsidized services to these otherwise disadvantaged populations.