Haiti and the Outbreak

Natural disasters are always surprising because each specific, affected area has diverse social, economic, and health circumstances. There are some parallels nevertheless concerning health effects of countless natural disasters. Distinguishing these connections will guarantee upcoming health and emergency medical assistance as well as restricted resources are well managed. A good example of a disaster that could assist with understanding possible health effects of these types of conditions was the cholera outbreak in Haiti. Here, first responders in hospitals, field Clinics as well as police and law enforcement personnel show what to do in order to develop an effective training program.After onset of a cholera epidemic in Haiti in mid-October 2010, a team of researchers from France and Haiti implemented field investigations and built a database of daily cases to facilitate identification of communes most affected. Several models were used to identify spatiotemporal clusters, assess relative risk associated with the epidemic's spread, and investigate causes of its rapid expansion in Artibonite Department. Spatiotemporal analyses highlighted 5 significant clusters (p

Haiti's Cholera Outbreak

Haiti's cholera outbreak began October 21, 2010. The MSPP or Haitian Ministry of Public Health and Population informed the public of a cholera pandemic was discovered to have been caused by Vibrio cholerae O1. The outbreak of cholera took the Haitian government and public by surprise. This is because at the time, the last cholera outbreak the Haitian government reported was over a century ago. Statistics of the time stated the epidemic affected 470,000 Haitians citing almost 7,000 deaths. Possible causes for the outbreak were deficient water treatment and insufficient hygiene. "Cholera typically spreads in places with deficient water treatment, inadequate hygiene, and poor waste management, and the event only magnified a precarious situation" (Prevention, 2015),

Approximations made through examination discovered that only about 50% of the country's population had right to use clean and treated drinking water before the incidence of the earthquake. Only 25% having access to satisfactory sanitation like latrines. Similar complications occurred in 2005, when Hurricane Katrina stormed in New Orleans, La. Countless people living in inferior conditions became the hardest hit in terms of health emergencies. Several factors encourage the spread of illness, not just natural disasters.

First Responders

First responders in hospitals, field Clinics, as well as police and law enforcement personnel should identify potential problems like foreign soldier visits into the region and sanitation conditions. Training to spot discrepancies in patients in clinics that may suffer from conditions brought on by poor hygiene can lead to potential aversion of epidemics like the cholera outbreak of Haiti. Law enforcement deal with conditions in local regions. If they remain knowledgeable of potential occupations from foreign forces, they can in the very least, report suspicious activity to the government and military.

Haiti reported media outlets connected the epidemic to the deadly earthquake Haiti experienced 9 months before. It also could have been connected to the rumor of Nepalese soldiers staying in Haiti, carrying cholera, thus being the ones responsible for importing cholera back into Haiti. Although it is hearsay, rumors such as these along with examining current living and sanitation conditions in Haiti could help alleviate or prevent illness-based disasters.

When Haiti identified the cholera outbreak, the government implemented a watching to register all ambulatory patients, deaths, and hospital admissions. Every nongovernment and government health facility in Haiti updated with cases daily "to the Direction of Health in each department, which colligated data before sending them to MSPP" (Piarroux, 2011, p1162) this in turn offered evidence-based practice for first responders in other areas wishing to train. If an outbreak were to surface in the United States, daily updates such as these should be mandatory for all healthcare facilities, including private healthcare facilities.

The epidemiological concerns resulting from this catastrophe came from studies demanding correct information from the 140+ Haitian communities from mid October 16 until the end of November 2010. Possible cholera cases became categorized as "profuse, acute watery diarrhea in persons" (Piarroux, 2011, p1161). Bacteriologic validation was only managed from the first cases.

Psychological/Social Traumas

Aside from physical symptoms, psychological/social traumas could bring about psychoactive problems like PTSD, depression, and criminal activity. Outbreaks like the one in Haiti took the lives of thousands of people. People lost family members, children, and spouses. Death and grief are powerful and may affect people in significant ways. Clinical and hospital first responders could learn how to deal with patients dealing with grief, in order to provide them the counseling they need. Some people however, may not accept counseling and many instead participate in criminal activity.

When outbreaks occur, some people will see this as an opportunity to commit crimes. That is why law enforcement can provide additional support as first responders. If they are trained to spot and see differences in communities and suspicious behavior, they may be able to avoid additional criminal activity brought on by the epidemic. Law enforcement are there to maintain stability and safety in local regions. They are essential as first responders when the military cannot reach affected people.

Enabling effective measures like training based on previous similar disasters will help law enforcement and medical personnel find effective methods of identifying suspicious people and deal with potential criminal activity brought on by the disaster. It can also help with prevention as the epidemic in Haiti may have been because of the aforementioned importation of cholera from Nepalese soldiers. Talking to people affected by such an outbreak whether it be in a clinical or law enforcement setting, provides first responders with clues as to where the source of contamination originated from.

The results from several studies concerning the cholera outbreak in Haiti, confirmed the possible source of the outbreak originating from introduction of cholera into Haiti. "There was an exact correlation in time and places between the arrival of a Nepalese battalion from an area experiencing a cholera outbreak and the appearance of the first cases in Meille a few days after" (Piarroux, 2011, p1168). Meille was a remote place that could not have affected the point of origin for the epidemic. Therefore, the soldiers were most likely the ones that introduced the disease back into the country. Mental health screenings as seen in first world hospitals can help victims of disasters deal with trauma, but also reveal important information concerning resolution of the disaster, especially if it is disease-based.