Tag Archives: Health + Medical

Haiti Grassroots Watch: AyitiKaleJe (Video)

25 Dec

“We need a code of ethics with a national strategy”

(Video Credit: Ayiti Kale JE)

“For Dossier #4, Haiti Grassroots Watch took a look at cholera, water and sanitation“

Video Focus:

1. Why has cholera hit the country so hard?

2. What is the real situation of water and sanitation?

3. How did things get this way?”

“Haiti Grassroot Watch is a partnership whose goal is to look more deeply at Haiti’s reconstruction”

This video is an on the ground view of cholera that takes a look at some of the more complex issues that are associated with the cholera epidemic, such as access to clean water, the role of government and NGO’s.

In some cases patients with previous health conditions are not being treated. (According to this report) “Some infected people also have other conditions but some hospitals refuse them care.” Malnutrition, HIV/AIDS and other previous health conditions make it increasing difficult to fight against cholera. Pregnant woman battling cholera face greater health issues. More often than not infants are born prematurely or die during the pregnancy.

“A lot of NGOs are working on water and sanitation, but they aren’t coordinated, and they can’t replace the state”

“There are a lot of NGOs!”  This report suggest that the effort of various NGO’s working in Haiti would be more effective if those efforts were being coordinated or monitored in someway. Their are too many NGO’s in Haiti, and some are believed to be doing “superficial, almost ‘folkloric’ projects.”

“We need a code of ethics with a national strategy”

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News Update: Cholera numbers

19 Dec Source: msnbc.com

Cholera in Haiti - news.nationalpost image

Death Toll: 2,535

Total Affected: 114,497

Hospitalized: 58,190

Recovered: 56,463

Location: Cholera has spread to all 10 provinces of Haiti, some cases have been reported in the Dominican Republic and Florida, USA

Artibonite has been most affected by the cholera outbreak, with 807

How it began:

It is believed that the epidemic began with an imported strain of the disease that could be traced back to UN peacekeepers from Nepal.

Source: msnbc.com

“The body of 7-year-old Kevin Francois, who according to his mother died of cholera in route to the hospital, lies in the street covered as a man, pulls the body of his father-in-law to the cemetery after he found him dead of cholera in the street near his home in Cap Haitian, Haiti, Friday, Nov. 19, 2010. Thousands of people have been hospitalized for cholera across Haiti with symptoms including serious diarrhea, vomiting and fever and at least 1,100 people have died.”

 

Articles:

Haiti Cholera toll passes 2,500

Haiti cholera investigation announced by United Nations

 

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News Update: Cholera in Haiti

13 Dec

Cholera Victims in Haiti (Photo Credit -- Getty via ABC News Radio)

Cases of Cholera have now been reported in every district of Haiti as well as in some areas of the Dominican Republic and Florida. The cholera outbreak in Haiti has infecting nearly 91,000 people claiming the lives of over 2,000, but will not be spread in DR or FL as both of these region s have better access to clean drinking water and medical facilities.

FIGURE 1. Reported number of new cases of cholera (N = 91,770), by hospitalization status --- Haiti, October 20--December 3, 2010* (Image Credit: CDC)

“Cholera is caused by a bacteria, Vibrio cholerae, which causes an infection of the intestine and produces a toxin that triggers watery diarrhea that can lead to dehydration and death. The disease has largely been eliminated in countries that have access to clean drinking water, but can spread rapidly in areas where people drink tainted water. An infected human can produce the bacteria in his feces for up to two weeks, even if they don’t show signs of illness.”

FIGURE 2. Cumulative number of cases of cholera reported overall* and date of first laboratory-confirmed case, by department and in Port-au-Prince†--- National Cholera Monitoring System, Haiti, December 3, 2010 (Image Credit: CDC)

“The cholera epidemic has spread rapidly not only because of the poor health infrastructure and water sanitation in Haiti, but also because of some stark biological realities. Haiti hasn’t seen cholera in at least a century, leaving the population without immunity to the disease.”

“As of December 3, a total of 91,770 cases had been reported nationwide, and 43,243 (47.1%) patients had been hospitalized (Figure 1). The largest number of cases (42,596 [46.4%]) were reported from Artibonite Department, which comprises approximately 16% of the Haiti population (2) and is the department where cases were first laboratory-confirmed (Figure 2).”

FIGURE 3. Rolling 7-day hospital case-fatality ratio* for Artibonite and all other departments --- Haiti, October 31--December 3, 2010 (Image Credit: CDC)

Resources:

Cholera in Haiti has spread to every part of the country, CDC reports

Update: Outbreak of Cholera — Haiti, 2010

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SpotLight: Charity Water (UnShaken)—Clean water for Haiti

30 Nov (Photo Credit: Charity Water)

“Charity: Water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations.”

One of the many countries that they help is Haiti via project Unshaken.

Project “Unshaken” is a fundraising campaign that supports large-scale water projects in 10 different communities in Haiti.  The goal is to provide the people of these communities with “access to clean, safe drinking water.”

100% of all donations will fund water projects in Haiti

(See their annual Financial Report)

The 10 communities listed below will directly benefit from the money raised.  [8 of the 10 project have already been funded!]

Plaissance

Titans

Roche-Pab 2

Blanchard

Mosambe

Corporant

Kampech

Lorandou

Nan Simon

Marialapas

(Image Credit: Charity Water)

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Cholera is spreding in Haiti at an alarming rate

25 Nov OB-LA702_haiti1_G_20101124223829

WSJ Reports

Father holds son while being treated for cholera at a health facility on Wednesday in Cabaret, Haiti. (Photo Credit: WSJ)

“PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti—Cholera is now projected to spread more than twice as fast as originally estimated across this ravaged country, with more than 425,000 cases of the potentially fatal disease expected in the first six months since it appeared, a United Nations official said.

As many as 200,000 of those cases are expected before the end of the year, with a peak before Christmas, Nigel Fisher, U.N. humanitarian coordinator in Haiti, said in an interview.”

“When we were in the initial stages of planning, we had said there would be 200,000 cases over six months,” he said. “Today the figures are 425,000 over six months, of which 200,000 before year’s end, with a peak before Christmas.”

“The predictions reflect the explosive nature of the cholera epidemic, which erupted in rural Haiti in October but has since spread to each of the country’s 10 regions, as well as Port-au-Prince, where more than 1.3 million displaced earthquake survivors live in crowded camps.

Officially, the disease had sickened 66,593 people and killed 1,523 as of Monday, according to the Ministry of Health. But the real number of cases is likely much higher, health officials acknowledge, partly because the systems used to count the ill aren’t capturing every nonhospitalized case. Cholera is spread through contaminated water and food, and officials had predicted it would move around the country quickly because sanitation is poor and clean water is lacking.”

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Haiti: Cholera & Protest (Estimated: 1,000 Dead 15,000 hospitalized)

16 Nov

“Health officials reported that the disease has spread to the capital, Port-au-Prince, where they fear it could spread quickly in slums and in camps teeming with people left homeless by January’s devastating earthquake. Nearly 1,000 Haitians have already been killed by the disease.”

“How quickly is cholera spreading in Haiti?
Nearly 15,000 people have been hospitalized with cholera-like symptoms. Doctors fear the infection rate could rise quickly now that the outbreak has reached the crowded capital city of Port-au-Prince, where a million people who were left homeless by the January earthquake are living in poor sanitary conditions that could help the disease spread. “All of the hospitals in Port-au-Prince are overflowing with patients,” says Stefano Zannini, head of Doctors Without Borders in Haiti.”

“Why are protesters fighting with the U.N.?

Many of the demonstrators believe U.N. soldiers from Nepal brought the disease into the country.  The strain of cholera spreading through Haiti resembles one that originated in Asia, although it has been circulating around the globe for decades.

“Is there any way to stop the outbreak?” (Follow the link for more info)

“Since cholera is caused by bacteria spread in contaminated water or food, a simple bar of soap can provide some defense. In Haiti, where a cake of local soap costs 50 cents and the average person lives on less than $1.25 a day, many people can’t afford to buy it.”

(Text Credit: theWeek.com sourcing CNN, NY Times, Wash. Post, VOA, Guardian, NPR)

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SpotLight: “KOFAVIV” is an example of GIRL POWER at its best!

16 Nov 13302_104741972890385_103953636302552_101849_1326910_n

It is with great respect that Mangoes & Lemonade introduces you to the women of KOFAVIV (Komisyon Fanm Viktim pou Viktim) which translates to (Commission of Women Victims for Victims).

Women gather for an image (Photo Credit: KOFAVIV)

This organization has partnered with MADRE “to meet immediate needs of rape survivors in the camps and develop community-based anti-violence strategies that uphold the full range women’s human rights. KOFAVIV has over 1,000 members in the camps, and women know that they can turn to KOFAVIV if they’ve been raped.”

“The women of KOFAVIV are survivors in every sense of the word.  After losing their homes and possessions in the January 2010 earthquake, they reconstituted the organization in one of the sprawling, makeshift camps of Port-au-Prince. There, they are responding to epidemic levels of rape by working with MADRE to prevent and redress sexual assault, care for survivors and build a movement for human rights in Haiti.”

Whistles saves lives of potential attack victims

(Video Credit: MADREspeaks)

These women are leading an important mission. Truly “making Lemonade” out of lifes lemons. Keep up the GREAT work!

Note: MADRE is an organization that advocates for women’s right worldwide. The work they are doing in Haiti is admirable and extends beyond KOFAVIV.  See the  “Current Campaigns” section of their website for more details.

How YOU can help:

Organize a Fundraiser

Volunteer YOUR time

Make a Donation

[Note: You should contact MADRE and request more info on how to donate directly to Haiti if you are interested in doing so.]

Raise Awareness: Repost, Link, Tweet and Share this info!

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Haiti: Cholera Has Reached Port-au-Prince

13 Nov

Resident of a camp fills bucket with clean water. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

800 reported deaths and an estimated 12,000 infected

On the side of the NGOs, Doctors Without Borders is stepping up its cholera response in Port-au-Prince. They have currently 400 beds for treatment of cholera cases, and are aiming at adding 600 beds by this week-end. Doctors Without Borders has currently 165 international staff members and more than 400 Haitian staff members working on cholera treatment in the island.

“We are trying to explain that cholera can kill, but at the same time it is a disease that you can treat quite easily. Cholera treatment centers where patients can be isolated are critical for effective treatment. The access points are controlled so that whomever enters or leaves is sprayed with chlorine to disinfect properly and prevent spread of infection,” said Stefano Zannini, Doctors Without Borders head of mission in Haiti. Zannini is getting increasingly concerned by the sheer numbers of people in need of treatment, and added: “Patients are coming from everywhere, thorough the city slums and even wealthy areas.”

via Haiti: Cholera Has Reached Port-au-Prince, Thousands Could Die.

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