ARTICLE - ARTIBONITE NEEDS 1,200 BODY BAGS

THE ARTIBONITE NEEDS AT LEAST 1,200 BODY BAGS

(HaitiLibre.com)

Action Contre la Faim (ACF), which is now the only organization of emergency in the Haut Artibonite and North West indicated that given the population density, to psychosis growing up in the city, with multiple risk of contamination, size and inaccessibility of some areas of the Artibonite and Northwest, it is urgent that other actors specializing in water, sanitation and hygiene are mobilized in these areas.


The epidemic is spreading each day a little more in Gonaives, agglomeration of more than 300,000 inhabitants : for the single day of November 8, 460 people presented themselves for consultation at the hospital in Raboteau when they were 360 the day before and 104 the day before that. The epidemic is becoming out of control in these areas.


The ACF said that the focus of the international community in Port-au-Prince and the lower Artibonite, although it is important, is detrimental to other affected areas.In the Artibonite, the center of the epidemic, OCHA, MINUSTAH, the government and humanitarian partners report that with the increasing workload, more medical staff with more experience is needed urgently as well as medical supplies supplementary, including at least 1,200 body bags according to an official report.


Despite the active presence on the ground of the Cuban brigade, consisting of 118 doctors, 78 nurses and 56 others (laboratory technicians and medical staff of Haiti which was trained in Cuba) plus the major human resources of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and Partners in Health, Artibonite and Northwest, have a need for more medical partners on the ground.


Following the increase of cases in the Northern Department, UNICEF stated that a Cholera Treatment Centre (CTC) had been installed in Port-de-Paix. Specialists are being deployed to provide technical assistance. The logistics division carried six tents, 1,000 liters of Ringer's lactate, 200,000 sachets of oral rehydration salts sachets, chlorine for disinfection and 150,000 tablets for purifying water.


While the government announces daily, significant increases of inpatients, the figures of death remains until now surprisingly "moderate" [controlled? ]. However, it seems that when at least 1.200 body bags are envisaged for Artibonite, it's that the situation is undoubtedly more important than the 724 deaths (official figure - MSPP - November 9) recorded since October 21, 2010 (for the whole country ...).


The population has the right to know the truth about the epidemic. The health of the population must take precedence over politics, and the government bear the political consequences (if he has the courage, which is far from certain).