Cholera In Haiti

Problem

Although Haiti has been negatively affected by many health challenges, the most compelling challenge remains frequent natural disasters which cause high incidence rates of preventable infectious disease and mental illness.

Progress

Cholera:

Cholera is one of the major challenges Haiti still faces as a result of the effects of natural disasters. Shortly after the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti in January 2010, Haiti experienced a devastating cholera outbreak, killing over 9,100 people (United Nations, 2016). Since then, efforts have been made to further prevent such an epidemic. However, when Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti in October 2016, the country faced a cholera outbreak battle again. Numerous organizations,

The CDC, along with the Haitian Ministry of Public Health and Population, trained over 500 healthcare workers to provide health care services and education at the community level across the country. Additionally, it increased the number of cholera treatment centers and oral rehydration points, which ultimately helped save approximately 7,000 lives (CDC, 2015). After 2010, in order to prevent yet another outbreak, the CDC has implemented programs and strategies to improve water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). These programs include establishing water chlorination programs, providing cholera health promotion materials, and developing the Safe Water System with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) in communities. The Safe Water System incorporates three elements: household water treatment, safe storage of treated water in homes, health facilities, and schools, and behavior change communication to improve hygiene, sanitation, and water handling

The United Nations Children’s Fund is a key player in cholera prevention, preparedness and response. The organization has been facilitating programs and activities to control cholera such as providing supplies and equipment, establishing rapid response alert systems, and restoring safe conditions in hurricane-affected treatment centers. Furthermore, UNICEF continues to support the Government by co-leading sectors in WASH, education and nutrition, and child protection. Through UNICEF’s cholera vaccination campaign, 807,395 people received the cholera vaccine (UNICEF, 2017) within six weeks post-Hurricane Matthew. During that time, UNICEF also increased its number of Immediate Response Teams (IRT) from 5 to 36 and were ready to deploy within 48 hours. Currently, UNICEF’s interventions include promoting proper hygiene and sanitation practices, providing safe water for drinking, cooking, and personal hygiene, and supplying WASH packages and UNICEF Cholera