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News for the Week of November 16, 1998

November 16, 1998

Hurricane Mitch Relief

  • Honduras:

    MSF is now utilizing land cruisers, cargo planes, and helicopters to deliver medical and relief supplies to remote regions of Honduras. Seven medical teams, made up of doctors, nurses, and water and sanitation experts, are traveling throughout the country to provide relief. We have three teams in the north on the Atlantic coast, one in the capital of Tegucigalpa, two in Chulateca in the south, and one evaluation team in the eastern part of the country. The medical teams are helping to reorganize local health posts, give medical consultations, and distribute emergency nutritional supplements. Yesterday, November 15, MSF found 4 communities isolated in a mountainous region of the country and is arranging for a delivery of emergency food and water supplies.

  • Nicaragua:

    MSF is using two helicopters to reach populations in need in remote regions of Nicaragua that have been cut off since Hurricane Mitch. Teams have flown to Condega, San Andres de Bocay, and along the Rio Grande de Matagalpa. Medical teams are distributing water, medical supplies, and emergency high-energy nutritional supplements to the remote communities. Teams are also monitoring any suspected outbreaks of cholera.

  • Guatemala:

    MSF continues to work with CONRED, the National Commission for the Reduction of Disasters, to distribute medicines, medical equipment, emergency shelter, and water and sanitation supplies to populations in need. Volunteers are mainly working in the areas of Chinoc Izabal, Rio Dulce, and Alta Verapaz.

  • El Salvador:

    MSF is distributing medicines to 30 health districts in the hardest-hit regions of El Salvador. In Chilanguera in the department of San Miguel, where large parts of the community were destroyed by the hurricane, MSF is prioritizing emergency shelter for the homeless and reconstruction of the basic sanitation system. So far, MSF has set up 40 tents, installed pumps and electric generators, and built 40 latrines.

Supporting Health Clinics in Tajikistan

MSF is resuming its health programs in the Karategin valley of eastern Tajikistan. Last summer, all international aid organizations in the area suspended their operations after four UN observers were murdered. The organizations have now received security guarantees from four commanders of the United Tadjik Opposition (UTO). An MSF team will supply medicines to 135 health posts in the Karategin valley and hopes to complete distribution before winter closes in.

Caring for Mothers and Children in Afghanistan

An MSF team in Kandahar, Afghanistan, is setting up a coordination center for mother and child healthcare. In keeping with Taliban laws, the clinic will be staffed by women only. The center will assist the Afghan Health and Development Services (AHDS) - an Afghan non-governmental organization - in supporting and training female staff in clinics in rural areas of Kandahar and Oruzgan provinces. In Afghanistan, 17 out of 1,000 women die during or shortly after childbirth, one of the highest maternal mortality figures in the world. The MSF program will concentrate its efforts on training and supporting traditional birth attendants. In addition, MSF has recently opened a mother and child health clinic in Tarin Kowt in Oruzgan, with the full support of the local Taliban authorities.

Fighting an Outbreak of Shigellosis in Kenya

An MSF team has been deployed to the Sanburu (Rift Valley) region of Kenya to combat an outbreak of shigellosis (a contagious form of severe diarrhea that, left untreated, has a potential mortality rate of 5-30%). In cooperation with the Ministry of Health, MSF has opened a treatment center in Barsaloi to treat those afflicted with the illness and assess the effectiveness of current treatments. In addition, two mobile teams will be carrying out a survey of the number of cases in the region and refering those afflicted to the treatment center

Panel Discusion on Mental Health

On Thursday, November 19, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm, MSF will present a panel on "The Aftermath of War: a Legacy of Trauma" at Roosevelt Hospital in New York City.

 

Tags: Afghanistan, Honduras, Nicaragua, Tajikistan, Natural Disaster

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MSF midwife, Rebecca Ullman, talks about the difficult decisions she had to make in Ivory Coast.

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