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At least 307 records · Page 17Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

Social support mobilization and deterioration after Mexico's 1999 flood: effects of context, gender, and time.

Samples of adults representative of Teziutlán, Puebla, and Villahermosa, Tobasco, were interviewed 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after the devastating 1999 flood and mudslides. The interview contained multiple measures of social support that had been normed for Mexico. Comparisons between sample data and population norms suggested minimal mobilization of received support and substantial deterioration of perceived support and social embeddedness. Social support was lowest in Teziutlán, which had experienced mass casualties and displacement, and among women and persons of lower educational attainment. Disparities according to gender, context, and education grew larger as time passed. The results provide compelling evidence that the international health community must be mindful of social as well as psychological functioning when disasters strike the developing world.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

The experiences of Project Liberty crisis counselors in the Bronx.

This exploratory study collected qualitative interview data from Bronx-based crisis counselors associated with the post-9/11 recovery program Project Liberty. Two focus groups from a single area provider were conducted to identify key thematic issues regarding program implementation. As conditions in the Bronx were demanding, the descriptions of relief efforts as told by these workers are informative for developing models for emergency service response in marginalized areas as well as in locations that are not directly impacted by events but are in relatively close proximity.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1983

The definition and classification of disasters.

The universe, we are told, began with a big bang, and ever since, nature has provided a series of unexpected bangs and calamities of one type or another. Since the advent of the industrial revolution, man has been more or less controlling larger and larger amounts of energy. World population has rocketed. The interaction of crowded humanity and escalating energy has added a series of man-made disasters to the continuing natural calamities.

Classification↗
PubMed1990

Acute haemodialysis during the Armenian earthquake disaster.

On the 7 December 1988 an earthquake struck a densely populated region in northern Armenia. Up to 50,000 people were killed and many thousands were seriously injured. At least 385 of these casualties developed acute renal failure secondary to crush syndrome and required dialysis. The Armenian renal unit at Yerevan, in common with units elsewhere, was already overstretched to cope with the dialysis requirements of their patients with chronic renal failure before the earthquake. Most of the patients requiring dialysis were transferred to other hospitals in the USSR but 120 patients remained in Yerevan, the majority at the regional renal unit, overwhelming the resources. We assisted by taking a team of dialysis personnel, equipped with portable haemodialysis machines, to Yerevan. We performed 57 haemodialysis sessions and treated 15 patients, 13 of whom ultimately survived. Valuable lessons were learnt about the medical management of disasters abroad.

Acute Kidney Injury↗
PubMed1993

Mortality rates in displaced and resident populations of central Somalia during 1992 famine.

Famine and civil war have resulted in high mortality rates and large population displacements in Somalia. To assess mortality rates and risk factors for mortality, we carried out surveys in the central Somali towns of Afgoi and Baidoa in November and December, 1992. In Baidoa we surveyed displaced persons living in camps; the average daily crude mortality rate was 16.8 (95% CI 14.6-19.1) per 10,000 population during the 232 days before the survey. An estimated 74% of children under 5 years living in displaced persons camps died during this period. In Afgoi, where both displaced and resident populations were surveyed, the crude mortality rate was 4.7 (3.9-5.5) deaths per 10,000 per day. Although mortality rates for all displaced persons were high, people living in temporary camps were at highest risk of death. As in other famine-related disasters, preventable infectious diseases such as measles and diarrhoea were the primary causes of death in both towns. These mortality rates are among the highest documented for a civilian population over a long period. Community-based public health interventions to prevent and control common infectious diseases are needed to reduce these exceptionally high mortality rates in Somalia.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Perceptions from epidemiologic research in an endemic war.

Several endemic wars have developed since the second world war. In these wars, like endemic diseases, war becomes an accepted and expected activity incorporated into the lives of a large proportion of the population. This paper illustrates some of the special problems of epidemiologic research in an endemic war based on a number of studies conducted in Lebanon over the past decade. The special problems faced by epidemiologists in an endemic war include; a situation of dynamic change where long term planning is next to impossible, the military sensitivities involved in data collection, and the compromises one has to make with scientific rigor. The paper concludes with a perspective for action by health professionals in wartime. It recommends preventive action in wartime in addition to relief and an involvement in the search for alternative approaches to conflict resolution.

Epidemiology↗
PubMed1989

Political violence and Eritrean health care.

In both colonial and post-colonial eras, the creation of nation states has often been accompanied by conflict and violence in Third World countries, particularly if such attempts have ignored previously existing cultural, religious and/or ethical differences. The illegitimacy of national state construction becomes even more apparent when the attempt is associated with conflicting geopolitical interests of the 'super-powers', as is in the case of the Horn of Africa. The 27 years of armed struggle of Eritrea to free itself from Ethiopian domination is a consequence of previous and continuing attempts to create a nation state serve the interests of the ex-colonialists and 'super-powers' at the expense of the needs and desires of the people. Throughout the 27 years of struggle with its inevitable disruption of civilian life and service provisions, Eritrea has continued to develop a needs-based health care system. The Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) has developed a health care system which directly involves the people themselves. Through careful selection of priorities and a national allocation system for the distribution of scarce resources, it has provided remarkably effective emergency services, primary care and preventive health services. Such an approach has avoided the errors committed by many other Third World countries who, through copying modern western medical care systems, developed secondary and tertiary medical care facilities which were irrelevant to the health care needs of the vast majority of their populations.

Ethiopia↗
PubMed1989

Health needs of older adults displaced to Sudan by war and famine: questioning current targeting practices in health relief.

The high rates of death, disability and illness and the scarcity of resources associated with relief operations for victims of oppression, war and famine have led to some support systems of triage for health and nutritional care in relief. Two vulnerable groups have often been given priority for targeting in health relief--young children and their mothers. This paper reports the findings of a study of the health needs of another vulnerable group, older adults, among those who had been recently displaced to Sudan in 1984-1985 by the war and famine in Tigray region of Ethiopia. The study attempted to determine the extent to which morbidity events and migration affected the life-style of older adults and the socio-economic support mechanisms which were available to them. The findings indicate that older adults (those over 45 years of age) were a very small proportion of the population and that over half of those aged 60 years and over (defined as 'elderly' in this paper) had been left behind in Tigray. This may well indicate that disability, illness or both, forced many older adults, particularly those most in need, to remain in Tigray. Among older adults living in Sudan, high levels of minor disability, social isolation and total economic dependency indicated vulnerability, but older adults had not been specifically considered in health policies and plans. Their primary needs were basic--for cloth, food, shelter, transport, seeds, oxen and farming tools. We conclude that priority in relief should be to support individuals, families and entire communities by adequately providing for basic needs. Furthermore, international relief agencies should give equal consideration to those who remain in their homes and those who migrate for assistance. This approach would take into consideration quality of life, not just the number of lives saved among those who reach the camps and shelters, and would assume responsibility for 'Health for All', not just for selected 'vulnerable groups'.

Aged↗
PubMed1993

Health related response to natural disasters: the case of the Bangladesh cyclone of 1991.

This paper evaluates the health related response to large natural disasters using the example of the recent Bangladesh cyclone of 1991. After providing a description of the extent of the health response, it focuses on three major issues: (i) assessment of needs (ii) coordination of major groups involved in health relief and rehabilitation efforts and (iii) appropriateness and effectiveness of the health response in terms of definable outcome criteria. The conclusions are that in the case of the Bangladesh cyclone: (a) the assessment of needs was more reactive rather than anticipatory and was not based on any systematic data gathering from the field; (b) in contrast to previous disaster situations there was excellent coordination of the major groups involved in the aid process (the government, the armed forces and non-governmental organizations) and (c) given the caveat of inadequate baseline information, it appears that the health response was prompt and effective in preventing any increase in mortality from diarrheal diseases and measles. The reasons for the deficiencies and successes of the health response are analysed and finally a list of detailed recommendations to facilitate future disaster/cyclone management and response is provided.

Bangladesh↗
PubMed1994

The Italian fight against world hunger. A critical analysis of Italian aid for development in the 1980s.

During the 1980s, Italy expanded its development assistance, soon becoming the fifth largest donor. Italian development cooperation directed much effort to alleviate hunger, malnutrition and their health consequences. This paper provides an evaluation of Italy's fight against world hunger considering the political environment in which the policy was conceived and implemented, the organizational structure behind the policy, and the available quantitative indicators of outcome. The analysis shows how powerful humanitarian drives, supported by inchoate thinking about development problems and priorities, and by institutional and technical confusion, gave rise to development programs below accepted standards. Poor financial planning and the absence of proper mechanisms for project appraisal facilitated the capture of some programs by domestic political and commercial interests. In 1992, Italian magistrates began investigations into the extent of corruption in development assistance; preliminary reports documented widespread waste and ineffectiveness in major aid projects. Substantial changes in organization and priorities are needed in order to control past practices of corruption, improve the effectiveness of projects, and redirect Italian aid towards development goals.

Efficiency, Organizational↗