Alliance of International Doctors
A Turkish humanitarian medical organization providing emergency relief, preventive care, health education, and psychosocial support in disaster- and poverty-affected communities.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Alliance of International Doctors, commonly known as AID and formally referred to in Turkish as Uluslararası Doktorlar Derneği, is a Turkish humanitarian medical organization established in Istanbul in 2011 by volunteer doctors, pharmacists, dentists, and nurses. Its work focuses on communities affected by armed conflict, displacement, natural disasters, poverty, and limited access to healthcare. Rather than operating as a conventional commercial healthcare brand, AID functions as a nonprofit-style professional and relief organization whose identity is built around volunteer medical expertise, field deployment, and cooperation with local and international institutions. The organization’s activities combine immediate humanitarian response with longer-term and preventive healthcare. In emergency settings, AID has carried out health screenings, distributed hygiene kits, and supported vaccination activities for Syrians affected by the Syrian Civil War. Following the large influx of people from Kobane in September 2014, it provided primary healthcare to Syrian refugees. AID has also delivered psychological and psychosocial support to people affected by war and natural disasters, including Syrian refugee women and children in Istanbul. These programs have included psychotherapy and other forms of assistance intended to help survivors, orphans, and families cope with trauma, bereavement, and displacement. AID’s permanent and preventive programs have included primary healthcare for Somali refugees in Kenya’s Dadaab Refugee Camp from August 2011 through July 2012. In East Africa, volunteers also implemented mosquito-net distribution programs in Kenya and Uganda to reduce malaria risk and established a mother-and-child health center in Uganda. In other regions, the organization has conducted circumcision projects for orphans and children from disadvantaged families in parts of the Balkans, Tunisia, and Bangladesh. Health education is another part of its model, with services delivered in coordination with local organizations in different areas. A significant specialist-care initiative has been AID’s cataract project in Niamey, Niger. The project was undertaken with IHH, the Islamic Development Bank, the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency, and Niger’s Ministry of Health. It involved establishing an ophthalmology department at Lamorde Hospital of Abdou Moumouni University, with a stated objective of providing 30,000 free cataract surgeries over five years while transferring clinical and technical skills to local personnel. AID’s responsibilities included supplying human resources and providing and maintaining medical equipment and consumables. The project was designed to support local ownership, with the department planned for handover to Nigerien authorities in 2019. AID’s positioning is therefore centered on humanitarian medicine, volunteerism, capacity building, and access to care rather than on branded consumer products. Its operating approach links short-term relief with public-health prevention and institutional partnerships. The available reference material identifies Dr. Mevlit Yurtseven as the organization’s president, but does not provide a detailed account of its current governance, funding, staffing, or financial performance. Its official website is presented as a Turkish-language site.
History
Alliance of International Doctors was established in Istanbul in 2011 by a volunteer group comprising medical professionals from several disciplines, including doctors, pharmacists, dentists, and nurses. From its beginning, the organization combined direct humanitarian assistance with longer-term public-health and medical-capacity projects. Its stated field of work has included regions affected by conflict, displacement, disasters, and poverty. One of its early documented programs supported Somali refugees in Kenya’s Dadaab Refugee Camp between August 2011 and July 2012. AID provided primary healthcare and used volunteer-led interventions to address preventable health risks. Related work in Kenya and Uganda included the distribution of mosquito nets for malaria prevention. In Uganda, the organization also established a mother-and-child health center, extending its activity beyond temporary relief toward more permanent community health infrastructure. The Syrian conflict became another important area of activity. AID conducted health screenings, distributed hygiene kits, and supported vaccination efforts for Syrians affected by the war. After a major influx of people from Kobane in September 2014, it provided primary healthcare to Syrian refugees. From 2014, it also delivered psychological support to Syrian refugee women and children in Istanbul, including psychotherapy and wider psychosocial assistance. The organization’s psychological-rehabilitation work has been directed more broadly at people affected by war and natural disasters, as well as orphans and their families experiencing trauma and loss. AID has also conducted targeted health programs in other regions. Circumcision projects were carried out for orphans and underprivileged children in parts of the Balkans, Tunisia, and Bangladesh. Its health-education work has been delivered with local organizations in different locations, reflecting an emphasis on cooperation with community structures rather than exclusively on externally managed service delivery. The organization’s specialist-care work includes a major cataract initiative in Niamey, Niger. AID worked with IHH, the Islamic Development Bank, the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency, and Niger’s Ministry of Health. The project established an ophthalmology department at Lamorde Hospital of Abdou Moumouni University. Its stated five-year target was 30,000 free cataract surgeries, accompanied by training and skills transfer for local personnel. AID was responsible for human resources and for the provision and maintenance of medical equipment and consumable supplies. The project’s intended endpoint was transfer of the department to Nigerien authorities in 2019. Across these activities, AID’s historical model has connected emergency medicine, disease prevention, specialist surgery, health education, and psychosocial care. The available material identifies Dr. Mevlit Yurtseven as president. Publicly available reference information does not establish a complete chronology of leadership, funding, legal structure, or later program outcomes, so those aspects remain incompletely documented in this dossier.
- 2019
Planned Niger ophthalmology handover
[1]The cataract project in Niger envisaged transferring its ophthalmology department to Nigerien authorities in 2019.
- 2014
Expanded Syrian refugee response
[1]AID provided primary healthcare to Syrian refugees following the mass influx from Kobane in September 2014 and began psychosocial support work for Syrian refugee women and children in Istanbul.
- 2012
Dadaab program concludes
[1]The primary-healthcare program for Somali refugees in Dadaab ended in July 2012, according to the referenced account.
- 2011
Organization established in Istanbul
[1]AID was founded by volunteer doctors, pharmacists, dentists, and nurses to provide medical assistance in areas affected by disasters and poverty.
- 2011
Dadaab refugee healthcare program begins
[1]AID began providing primary healthcare to Somali refugees in Kenya’s Dadaab Refugee Camp; the documented program continued through July 2012.
Products and positioning
Humanitarian and volunteer-led medical assistance organization focused on emergency response, preventive care, specialist treatment, health education, psychosocial rehabilitation, and local healthcare capacity building.
Humanitarian healthcare
Emergency medical relief
AID’s emergency-relief work includes medical assistance for populations affected by conflict, displacement, poverty, and disasters. Documented activities include health screenings, primary healthcare, hygiene-kit distribution, and vaccination support. These interventions are designed for settings where normal health systems are disrupted or where displaced communities face immediate barriers to care.
Public health
Preventive and community health programs
The organization has delivered prevention-oriented programs such as mosquito-net distribution in Kenya and Uganda, a mother-and-child health center in Uganda, and health education in coordination with local organizations. It has also conducted circumcision initiatives for orphans and disadvantaged children in several regions. The programs combine direct service delivery with practical measures intended to reduce avoidable health risks.
Specialist medical care
Niger cataract and ophthalmology program
AID’s Niger initiative established an ophthalmology department at Lamorde Hospital of Abdou Moumouni University in Niamey. The project targeted 30,000 free cataract surgeries over five years and included medical staffing, equipment, consumables, and skills transfer to local personnel. It was planned as a capacity-building project with eventual handover to Nigerien authorities.
Mental health support · 2014
Psychological and psychosocial support
AID provides psychological rehabilitation and psychosocial support for people affected by war, natural disasters, bereavement, and displacement. Documented beneficiaries include orphans, families, and Syrian refugee women and children in Istanbul. The work includes psychotherapy and support intended to mitigate trauma and help communities cope with loss.
Marketing campaigns
- 2014Syrian refugee emergency and psychosocial response
Syria · Turkey
AID supported Syrians affected by the civil war through health screenings, hygiene kits, vaccinations, and primary healthcare. It also provided psychological support, including psychotherapy, to Syrian refugee women and children in Istanbul.
Outcome. The program expanded AID’s documented work from physical healthcare into structured psychosocial support; detailed reach figures are unavailable.
- 2011Dadaab refugee primary healthcare program
Kenya
AID operated a primary-healthcare program for Somali refugees in Kenya’s Dadaab Refugee Camp from August 2011 to July 2012.
Outcome. The documented program ran for approximately one year; detailed patient and outcome figures are not provided.
- East African malaria prevention and maternal-child health
Kenya · Uganda
Volunteers distributed mosquito nets in Kenya and Uganda and established a mother-and-child health center in Uganda.
Outcome. The initiatives addressed malaria prevention and maternal-child health; quantitative results are not stated in the available material.
- Niger cataract project
Niger
In partnership with IHH, the Islamic Development Bank, the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency, and Niger’s Ministry of Health, AID supported an ophthalmology department at Lamorde Hospital with a target of 30,000 free cataract surgeries over five years.
Outcome. The project included local skills transfer and a planned handover of the department to Nigerien authorities in 2019. Completion and final surgical totals are not established by the available source.
Sources2 sources
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