Advice for those going to work in Haiti

19 April 2010

Our deepest sympathies go out to all those affected by the recent tragic earthquake in Haiti.

The United Nations issues regular updates on the gound situation in Haiti. This is essential information for all those going to work in Haiti in any capacity.

OCHA Situation Report No 34 - Haiti Earthquake - 16 April 2010

7th April 2010
The Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) has produced subject matter on a series of short pre-decision briefs for public health action on specific high-priority threats.

These twelve briefs have been tailored to the current post-earthquake situation in Haiti. They have been designed to provide key recommendations with relevant background information for decision makers in the Haiti Ministry of Health, the U.S. Government and non-governmental organisations. Each of the briefs has been reviewed and commented on by a number of respected experts from outside the agency who have experience in the relevant field.

For more information from CDC, please visit their website.

22nd February 2010
511,405 people have left Portau-Prince for outlying departments, according to the national Civil Protection Agency.

25th January 2010 - Recommended vaccinations update
Cholera vaccination is now recommended for all travellers to Haiti.

21st January 2010
Following Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti, we would like to offer our sympathy and support to all those affected by the quake, both to the people of Haiti and also to all international aid workers involved.

It has been estimated that up to 3 million people have been affected by the quake, which has prompted a huge international aid response. Here at InterHealth we will prioritise any aid workers travelling out to Haiti and those requiring help and advice.

020 7902 9000
info@interhealth.org.uk

For up-to-date news and information, visit the following recommended sites:

BBC News online
Reuters AlertNet
Foreign and Commonwealth Office

WHO information on Haiti earthquake
CDC information for relief workers deploying to Haiti

Further advice for travellers can also be found on The Travel Health Advice Centre, available to InterHealth subscribers, on vaccine and antimalarial recommendations and other advice for emergency relief workers and others travelling to the areas affected.

If you do not have your organisation’s unique web link, please email Felicity in the Marketing Team at felicity.pointer@interhealth.org.uk

Advice for aid workers travelling to Haiti

All those going to Haiti need, time allowing, to be covered for typhoid, hepatitis A and hepatitis B, tetanus, diphtheria, polio, measles (MMR) and rabies. Cholera is not currently being advised.

Each person should take or be known to have access to:

A diarrhoea kit plus one extra box of ciprofloxacin
A medicine kit containing an antibiotic
A first aid kit
Antimalarials, insect repellent and a mosquito net
Water purification tablets
Extra/ample supplies of personal medication
Gloves
Berlitz Travel Health Pocket Guide
Water purifier

Emergency Relief Information Sources Relevant to Haiti

Knowledge for Health Haiti Relief Toolkit

WHO, WFO and UNICEF recommendations for care of patients in Haiti.

Médecins Sans Frontières guidelines

MSF produce a series of guidelines and reference books, based on their field experience. For more information on their guidelines, visit their websites:

MSF handbooks and guidelines
MSF reference books

WHO information and online resources

For rural hospital guidelines, mostly surgical, see ‘Box 220’ here. More details about these "blue trunk libraries" can be found here. For more WHO online resources, visit their Global Health Library or read the online manuals available from WHO on emergency response.

For technical guidelines for health action in crises, visit the manuals and handbooks page to download information on health care of children in humanitarian emergencies, Emergency Essentials, Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies and Managing WHO Humanitarian Response in the Field.

The WHO bookstore also has publications on the following:

Clinical Outreach and Communication Activity (CDC)

CDC has updated several fact sheets that provide information healthcare providers and responders can utilise before, during and after an earthquake.

Please find below the most up-to-date versions of the following documents:

CDC's Earthquake Webpage includes many other resources for responders, and is being updated frequently.

Additional Earthquake Resources for Clinicians

Online Courses

The Emergency Management Division at the Justice Institute of British Columbia (JIBC)’s online learning section has online courses on the following:

Emergency Management
Incident Command System
Emergency Social Services
Health Emergency Management

More information on these courses can be found on the JIBC’s website.

Further courses from JIBC can be found here on the following topics:

Introduction to Emergency Management in BC
Introduction to Emergency Social Services (ESS)
Emergency Operations Centre Level 1
Emergency Operations Centre Operational Guidelines
Incident Command System (ICS) 100

We are grateful to Dr Tim Foggin, a Canadian expert on disasters, for compiling this information.