Features
Round table discussion asserts on health as foundations of safety under disaster risk reduction
The International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) recently organized a Round Table Discussion on Health and Disaster Risk Reduction highlighting Health as one of the non-negotiables of the Foundations of Safety in building community resilience.
The RTD was participated by different development organizations like Childfund, United Methodist Committee on Relief, Adventist Development Relief Agency, Peace and Equity Foundation, Lasallian Community Development Center- De la Salle University-Dasmarinas, Heifer International, Kilos Damit and Penn Multi-purpose Group. Dr. Shuzhen Xiao, Chief of Administrative Office of the UNESCO and International Research and Training Center for Rural Education also graced the said event.
Cathy Martin, Director on Disaster Management Services of the Philippine National Red Cross provided a presentation on its work related to health and DRR. Ms. Martin emphasized that health must not be isolated in the whole framework of disaster risk reduction and management. She further shared that the current training modules of Red Cross has been extended to 7 days from the usual 5 days because the additional 2 days is intended for health.
Brendan Manning of the Loma Linda University and currently an international intern on DRR of the IIRR facilitated a mapping exercise using a digital generated map on “who is doing what” on health and DRR. The mapping exercise provided the participants a bird’s eye view on the current work of the various organizations in attendance on health in their various project sites all over the country.
Daniel Kilpatrick, another student from Loma Linda University and currently taking his Masters in Global Public Health and an international intern on DRR of IIRR presented the initial framework of IIRR on Health and DRR.
Kilpatrick shared an alarming comparison on the impacts of the onset of the disaster versus unwanted deaths brought about by a secondary health hazard. For example, he presented that the total deaths of Cyclone Nargis in 2008 reached 138,000. In the same year, Malaria caused 1 million deaths worldwide. Thus, even one of the worst disasters of the past decade does not compare to the impact of health hazards with something like Malaria. Furthermore, Typhoon Ketsana (Ondoy) that hit Manila in 2009 claimed 246 deaths due to flashfloods, wherein after a month about 3,382 Leptospirosis cases were recorded with 249 deaths.
Kilpatrick highlighted that the non-negotiables of the foundations of safety under health includes primary health care, food and nutrition, water/sanitation and hygiene promotion, communicable diseases interventions, shelter and psychosocial issues interventions.
Emily Monville Oro, Country Programs Development Manager of the Regional Center for Asia-IIRR provided the participants practical link of health as foundations of safety to the whole Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction framework that IIRR is espousing. She also shared success stories of integrating health in CMDRR from Indonesia and Bangladesh. Health interventions are discussed within the framework of Individual Survivability which included promotion of primary health care, as well as Community Readiness in terms of strengthening health systems through , Building capacities of Village health workers and its system, Tapping Indigenous Knowledge and Technology, Physical and health infrastructure, establishing a Functional referral health system and Health financing.
The participants appreciated the significance of the framework that highlights and puts prime on health as a non-negotiable to the whole development of foundations of safety. The participants also raised the need to link the health framework that IIRR presented to the current Disaster Risk Management Act as well as existing development processes of the local government units which plays a very important role in building community resilience.
Participants of the Round Table Discussion on Health and Disaster Risk Reduction held last August 31, 2010 in IIRR.
