PAHO – Cholera in Haiti update, Oct. 28, 2010

PAHO EOC Situation Report #7 – Cholera Outbreak in Haiti

Date: 28 Oct 2010

Summary

• As of today, Haiti’s Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP – Ministère de la santé publique et de la population) has reported 4,649 cases and 305 deaths in four departments. Artibonite and Central are the most affected areas.
• The MSPP is training community health workers on the use of oral rehydration salts in order to provide treatment rapidly to the population. In addition, twelve messages have been developed to be disseminated to the public regarding hand washing, good hygiene and sanitation, safe food handling and others that prevent the spread of disease.
• Given the current situation, MSPP has established a flexible surveillance system to collect daily data on cholera, and the participation of NGOs that provide medical care in displaced person camps is critical. The MSPP with the support of PAHO will be holding trainings on this surveillance system, taking into account the Internally Displaced Persons Surveillance System (IDPSS) in order to create a clearer picture of the disease trend.

Full- report: http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/MUMA-8ANVTM/$File/full_report.pdf