disease dilemmas

Question 1

what happened in Haiti

Answer 1

• in January 2010
• hit by a earthquake with a magnitude of 7.
• 220,00 killed
• 300,000 injuries
• an estimated 1.3 million people were left homeless

Question 2

give evidence, to suggest that Haiti is poor

Answer 2

• 60% of the population lives on less than $2.50 per day.
• over 86% of inhabitants of Port-au-Prince, lived in slums prior to the earthquake.

Question 3

how did cholera spread in Haiti

Answer 3

• due to a UN camp that was hosting Nepal peacekeepers, discharging there waste into the nearby river.
• due to the lack of running pipes, etc, this river was the main local water source, and therefore meant that thousands of people contracted Cholera.

Question 4

how did human factors increase disease risk (cholera outbreak in Haiti)

Answer 4

• due to their being a limited amount of healthcare, thus meaning that transmission become more likely, due to individuals, being unable to receive treatment for Cholera.

Question 5

what strategies, can be used to mitigate the disease (cholera in Haiti)

Answer 5

• use water that has been treated, and is in a sealed container
• if a sealed source of water is unavailable then one should boil the water for 1 minute, before treating with chlorine or household bleach, in order to kill any bacteria that may be present.
• ensure that any fish, that could of contracted the disease, is fully cooked through in order to kill the germs.
• safe washing practice and disposable of waste is another stratergy used to reduce transmission of the disease

Question 6

what were the impacts of Cholera, following the natural disaster (Haiti earthquake)

Answer 6

• 500,000 reported cases of Cholera
• 7000 deaths
• 2300 hospitalised weekly, due to cholera
• 40 deaths per week, due to Cholera
• the earthquake, caused between 100,000 and 160,000 deaths, whilst there was a reported 280,000 buildings that were damaged or seriously damaged.

Question 7

what strategies, were used to mitigate the disease, and who was involved in doing this and why? (cholera outbreak in Haiti)

Answer 7

• UN and aid organisations and medical relief groups promoted a large scale response.
  there was direct treatment implemented, via specialised Cholera treatment.
• Mobile medical units, were deployed to more remote regions of the countries.
• a widespread health awareness campaign was launched to promote personal hygiene.
• Hygiene workshops for locals.
• long term solution, would be access to clean sanitised water.

Question 8

what were the environmental factors, that helped with the transmission on the disease

Answer 8

• rainfall and flooding help to spread contaminated water.
• initially environmental factors, did not play a significant role.
• hurricane Tomas, = rapid flooding , overflowing toilets + further spreading of infected water.