Haiti Health Cluster Bulletin No 3 - 22 January 2010
Highlights
WHO/PAHO
Hospital General Melenciano, Jimani
- Haiti’s Ministry of Health is becoming increasingly active in leading the health response.
- MINUSTAH is supporting humanitarian organizations in logistics, transport, fuel, and security.
- There are approximately 600 spontaneous settlements where people are gathering. Mobile clinics are extremely important for ensuring primary health care, and security is an increasing issue in these settlements.
- Currently there are 40 functioning health facilities in Port-au-Prince, 8 of which are field hospitals.
- Hygiene and care of lesions is an important issue in order to avoid infections. Care for disabled people will become a challenge over the coming days.
- Urgent surgical interventions are decreasing and the follow-up of the post surgical patients is a problem that needs to be solved.
- Information management is a challenge for all clusters/sectors.
ASSESSMENT AND MONITORING
- A survey carried out in 500 of the spontaneous settlements estimated that well over 470,000 people live there; however the survey was carried out during the day and it is known that the number increases at night. According to the Red Cross, there are 1 million people in these settlements.
- According to data provided by the Medical Ambassador of Canada Association, there are 20,000 people living in the Petionville Club (Delmas 48). Food was distributed but they need doctors and medical supplies.
- Approximately 6,000 people are living in a settlement in Bolosse, near Bel Air, UEBH (Union Evangelique Baptiste d’Haiti) and security is a problem.
- The Medical Ambassadors of Canada Association visited camps and health facilities to assess the needs. The findings are:
- Quiskeya Church, Delmas 75 – providing care for people in the Church. They need medical supplies.
- Clinique Mobile Education Rurale (CMER) -- distributing medicines in 43 quartiers, but they need more medicines to continue with the distribution.
- Cité Soleil, organization FOSREF -- they need medicines and medical supplies for home care.
- Grassier-Christianville -- outpatient medical care. They need medical supplies and have reported a case of tetanus.
- Delmas 18-Cite Cadet-Rue Pean, Assemblies of God -- church and school-refugee camp.
- Help Aid assessed the situation at the nursing home, Aisle Communale Municipal, and found patients were in distressed conditions with not enough food, water or clothing.
- South African Structural Engineer Specialists analyzed the Red Cross blood bank building and it is safe.
- The Rapid Need Assessment (IRA) field test will be delayed until Saturday.
GAP FILLING
1. Drug supplies
- MINUSTAH is replenishing oxygen supplies.
- PROMESS has received 200 units of 0+ blood and 150 units of 0- blood; the United Nations Clinic, in Logbase has 350 blood units and the National Laboratory also has available blood units.
- Information and registrations available in the Humanitarian Supply Management System (LSS/SUMA) were sent to the Health Cluster members in order to match needs with supplies.
- PROMESS distributed medical supplies to approximately 50 institutions between the 20 and 21 of January. It also received “WHO Emergency Kit 10000” and “WHO Emergency Kit 1000”. Haitian NGOs and Public Health institutions must obtain a signature from the Coordinator for Emergency Committee, Dr. Claude Surena at SOGET before going to PROMESS.
2. Outbreak control and environmental health
- The surveillance form developed by WHO/PAHO and the Ministry of Health is being shared and discussed with the Health Cluster.
3. Provision of basic health services
- MoH has a priority of setting up sites for long-term post-operative care in abandoned hospital structures. The first site will be announced in the coming week and has an anticipated capacity of 100 beds.
- MoH distributed guidelines on what should be available at primary and secondary level clinics. NGOs and organizations were asked to provide their comments.
- MSF surgical teams have been carrying out an average of 130 operations per day for the last few days and this is increasing as new surgical teams start work. There are now 10 operating theatres, 7 in Port-au-Prince hospitals (Choscal, Trinité, Carrefour and Chancerelle hospitals) and 3 in towns in the west of the capital (Leogane and Jacmel). The inflatable hospital with two operating theatres and 100 beds is being set up on a field in Port au Prince. The construction team expects to have it working on Friday morning.
- The Civil Protection Department of the Italian Government has 20 staff operational in the Saint Damien pediatric Hospital in Tabarre, near the American Embassy.
- APROSIFA is accepting patients for free at its emergency health facility at the following address: 122, Dalles Road from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with priority given to pregnant women, children and elderly people. There will be also a psychological unit.
- The Phillippines Department of Health is sending a health team composed of surgeons, anesthesiologists, pediatricians, emergency specialists, nurses, sanitary engineers, psychologists and social workers and they will coordinate with the Health Cluster
4. Water and sanitation
- WHO is organizing water and sanitation in health facilities and providing fuel for generators in the hospitals.
- WHO/PAHO, in collaboration with the DINEPA (Direction Nationale de l'Eau et de l'Assainissement) has identified a place to disposed health care waste collected from hospitals.
- WHO/PAHO, in collaboration with SNCRS (Service Metropolitain de Collected des Résidus Solides), identified a place for the safe disposal of excreta from public latrines used by communities living in the streets.
- Both sites mentioned above will be ready for use in the coming two days. Transport will be ensured by DINEPA and SNCRS.
COORDINATION
- Institutions participating: USAID, CDC, WHO-PAHO-UNICEF-UNFPA, Canadian Cooperation, Israeli Cooperation, Mexican Cooperation, Turkish, Japanese, Med sans Frontieres, CRS, Project Hope/COMFORT, Jordanian, Plan Haiti, FHI, Management Sciences for Health, HelpAid, Project Hope, People in Need, Japan Self-Defense Force, Medical Ambassadors of Canada Association, International Relief and Development, World Vision, Mexican Embassy in Haiti
- The health cluster meets daily at 4.00 pm in the OCHA Tent #1, Logbase. There is a general session followed by a division into subgroups (hospitals and mobile health teams).
- Data with the locations of all the hospitals and spontaneous resettlement sites is being gathered. The aim is to add information on the 3W (who, what, where) to coordinate efforts better. Maps will be produced, and GPS coordinates of where partners are working will be gathered.
- The Coordination Nationale des Secours du Secteur Santé (MoH) is in SOGED Building (close to CAMEP). The contact information is: coordinationsantedesastrehaiti@yahoo.com Phone number: 2510 00 13; 34918920/8934/8936/8952.
- A list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for the health cluster members is being developed.
- There is a forum for the exchange of information: www.haiti.oneresponse.info
- Tomorrow (Friday) at 10:00 a.m. the Reproductive Health Cluster will meet in front of OCHA Tent #1, Logbase.
IMPORTANT PUBLIC HEALTH MESSAGE
- Public health messages related to nutrition were translated to Creole and will be disseminated on local radio stations and the settlements.
- UNICEF, WHO/PAHO and WFP has made a joint statement for appropriate infant and young child feeding in Haiti.
CONTACTS
Pan American Health Organization, Emergency Operations Center, Washington DC eoc@paho.org
Health Cluster in Haiti hai.clustersante@paho.org