ABSTRACT:
Health systems in regions affected by conflict face significant challenges that threaten the right to health, with nurses often acting as the last line of defense for patient dignity, safety, and care. However, their ethical dilemmas, coping strategies, and resilience mechanisms are often underrepresented in global public health discussions. This interactive workshop aims to fill that gap by exploring the ethical, practical, and policy aspects of nursing in conflict zones, using the Gaza Strip as a key case example while connecting lessons to broader humanitarian settings to ensure global applicability. The session will enable participants to incorporate human rights-based approaches into teaching, leadership, clinical practice, and research. Through a mix of brief evidence-based presentations, small-group discussions, and collective reflection, participants will examine how nurses defend the right to health under threat, manage extreme working conditions, and gather international support. By the end of the workshop, participants will (1) understand how the right to health is systematically undermined in various conflict and humanitarian settings; (2) identify key challenges, coping strategies, and resilience mechanisms used by nurses; (3) collaboratively develop practical and rights-based strategies to support and empower nurses during crises; and (4) enhance international networks and partnerships for rights-based nursing advocacy. Expected outcomes include a shared understanding of nurses’ frontline role in defending the right to health, the development of a draft “Right-to-Health Nursing Framework in Conflict Zones,” and strengthened global collaboration among participants. The workshop aligns closely with the WCPH 2026 theme, Health Without Borders, by amplifying nurses’ voices, linking public health with human rights and nursing ethics, and fostering cross-border solidarity to safeguard health for all.