Re: Procative management of natural disater

[Guest guest]

Hi,

- Advance visit for establishing liasion and reccee

- Meeting the opinion leaders of the community

- Establishment of public relations

helps in logistics and administrtaion of the camp.

The advantages of advance visit are :

- It removes the " stress of unknown "

- Builds " WE " feeling between the camp authorities and community

- Helps finding out the existing facilities, infrastructure and need

of the community

The advance visit ideally should be by the decision maker from the

camp authorities. It should be pre-announced to community and DTP

for meeting must be fixed. Advance party must reach there 5-10

minutes before time. It should be during light hours. The advance

party should not expect any great hospitality from the community and

go self contained including snacks, drinking water, security ,

mobiles/walkie-talkie sets etc; The advance visit party must not

waste time in sight seeing or other non targeted issues. It should

be pure and absolute business.

In the camps that have been put by us, I have always accompanied

during the liasion visit along with 4-5 of our dedicated team

members who are hard workers and contribute to planning and

subsequent execution.

Vijay

>

> Friends,

>

> When organizing a mobile camp in the disaster affected area, I

have felt the necessity of prier discussion, with other parties /

NGO/ Govt. agencies doing similar job in the area. It is very

important to collaborate with them so that focus area of activity

will be different, to achieve a common goal.

>

> Like if one NGO, doing in water sanitation or health education in

the particular area it is better to concentrate on disease /

medicine distribution.

>

> Prier field visit is a must, before organizing a camp. One should

discuss with local people for smooth management of the camp.

>

> Trupti

>

[Guest guest]

Hi,

The main move for the camp should be preceeded by advance party of

staff which should include the persons who are best at setting up of

the camp and competent improvisers. They must be willing to do all

sorts of jobs, be ready to run around, suffer the hardship so that

the main party which arrives later can be made comfortable and can

start the work instantly, without any wastage of time in setting up

the camp.The advance party also should carry cooked food, drinking

water, sleeping bag, first aid material, lighting system (torch,

generator, lantern but NO open flame lighting) bleaching powder to

chlorinate the water source, disinfectants and back pack spraying

material to sanitise the area of the camp. We also used to carry a

portable water pump which was mounted on trolly to fill the water

drums for main body and electric wires, connector boards, master

switch bosard etc.

Vijay

> >

> > Friends,

> >

> > When organizing a mobile camp in the disaster affected area, I

> have felt the necessity of prier discussion, with other parties /

> NGO/ Govt. agencies doing similar job in the area. It is very

> important to collaborate with them so that focus area of activity

> will be different, to achieve a common goal.

> >

> > Like if one NGO, doing in water sanitation or health education

in

> the particular area it is better to concentrate on disease /

> medicine distribution.

> >

> > Prier field visit is a must, before organizing a camp. One

should

> discuss with local people for smooth management of the camp.

> >

> > Trupti

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi,

When I go in advance party, I also carry my back pack, all weather

proof, 4-man tent. It takes about 10 minutes to erect and has has

arrangements for extension shade to create 6x6 ft work area.

I have temporarily pasted the photo in photos file, which will be

subsequently removed.

Vijay

> > >

> > > Friends,

> > >

> > > When organizing a mobile camp in the disaster affected area,

I

> > have felt the necessity of prier discussion, with other

parties /

> > NGO/ Govt. agencies doing similar job in the area. It is very

> > important to collaborate with them so that focus area of

activity

> > will be different, to achieve a common goal.

> > >

> > > Like if one NGO, doing in water sanitation or health education

> in

> > the particular area it is better to concentrate on disease /

> > medicine distribution.

> > >

> > > Prier field visit is a must, before organizing a camp. One

> should

> > discuss with local people for smooth management of the camp.

> > >

> > > Trupti

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Dear Netrumians,This is just to share with you some input which occurred during the tsunami / kumbakonam school fire tragedy.When any disaster strikes the govt/central govt hospitals are immediately asked to send a team. Generally the orders to the Pharmacy section is " we need some drugs for the tsunami/disaster victims " . My reply usually is what do you want and how much of each do you want? We do have drugs, bandages and everything that is needed but in order to send them with the team we need quick statistics:

1. How many injured?2. What major injuries?3. What do you intend treating at the disaster site?The person in charge of the Pharmacy cannot guess what is needed by the medical team.

The problem when the tsunami struck was that either people were alive - with no physical injuries except minor abrasions or dead. So there was really no need for medicines. However, enter the politicians who want " something to be done and seen to be done in front of the cameras " . Hence there was a circus in which tetanus toxoid was being given to each and every person despite the fact that there was no way to maintain cold chain either during transport or at the camps since there was no electricity. Lorry loads of medicines such as paracetamol was mobilized by well meaning NGOs with no takers. I know of a faculty member who unpacked cartons of paracetamol and other medicines which were sent by his son for the tsunami victims and stored it in his home for months begging anyone to please use it - since it was not used for the victims.

One major observation made by my friends who went to the tsunami sites with resident doctors was that the liquor shops were all open within 24 hours. Well meaning people gave money to the victims and a good number of the men victims were drunk, unruly, disrupted the aid process since they demanded only money from the people who had come to help.

The next problem was the steady stream of politicians who vied with each major political party for sound bytes. The moment a group of victims saw the Pajeros and Qualis coming with police escort they would run towards them and start wailing in full view of the cameras. The politician would promise them something will be done. They would go back and wait for the next set of politicians to come and start this drama again. This was so irritating to the workers on the scene that they quickly lost all sympathy for the victims.

What I would like to state here is:1. There are good disaster management workshops being conducted in India - at least two core members from each govt. hospital should attend them and then conduct the same in their hospital for all staff.

2. The moment there is a disaster, the co-ordinating agency, usually the collector and other officials at the scene should give exact instructions to the hospitals from whom they are asking for help (easier said than done). In many cases the medical part is easier to handle than the food, shelter and warmth part.

3. Politicians who land up at disaster sites should not be given TV coverage - I feel they will not go to the sites then. Entry of politicians should be restricted, this will make it easier for those managing the disaster.

4. Liquor shops should be closed.5. All aid should be channeled through one co-ordinating agency. (during the tsunami, people collected so many clothes for distribution - but it was refused by the victims who claimed they did not want hand-me-downs. Hence the NGOs had no means but to throw them on the road side (since they had no place to store them). There was a veritable mountain of old clothes strewn all along the coast.

6. There should be a registry of NGOs trained to help during disaster. Only they should be permitted to offer help and others offering help should come through them.ThanksGitanjali

On Sun, Dec 28, 2008 at 11:22 PM, Trupti Swain <drtruptiswain@...> wrote:

Friends,

When organizing a mobile camp in the disaster affected area, I have felt the necessity of prier discussion, with other parties / NGO/ Govt. agencies doing similar job in the area. It is very important to collaborate with them so that focus area of activity will be different, to achieve a common goal.

Like if one NGO, doing in water sanitation or health education in the particular area it is better to concentrate on disease / medicine distribution.

Prier field visit is a must, before organizing a camp. One should discuss with local people for smooth management of the camp.

Trupti

-- Dr.Gitanjali Batmanabane MD PhDProfessor of Pharmacology & Officer-in-charge,Dept. of PharmacyJawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research

Pondicherry 605 006India

[Guest guest]

Dear Madam,

I am extreamly thankful to you for sharing your valuable experience

during tsunami and Kumbakonam fire which will be of great help to

us.

I agree with you that,assesment of the situation at the spot & the needs and priorities for immediate emergency measures to save and sustain the lives of survivors which should be balanced with

the resources available. ( It's very dificult practically)

We also experienced during camp for flood affected area of Orissa,that,

though we have sufficient medicines and antibiotics for water borne diseases, ARI ,pneumonia etc, more people turn up to take medicines for chronic

disorders like hypertension, asthma, diabetes

Again, its controversal wheather to donate money or essential goods to

the victims of disaster affected area.

Trupti

Trupti rekha SwainAssociate ProfessorDept. of PharmacologyS.C.B Medical College, Cuttack: 753007Phone: 09438126333

Friends,When organizing a mobile camp in the disaster affected area, I have felt the necessity of prier discussion, with other parties / NGO/ Govt. agencies doing similar job in the area. It is very important to collaborate with them so that focus area of activity will be different, to achieve a common goal.Like if one NGO, doing in water sanitation or health education in the particular area it is better to concentrate on disease / medicine distribution.Prier field visit is a must, before organizing a camp. One should discuss with local people for smooth management of the camp.Trupti-- Dr.Gitanjali Batmanabane MD PhDProfessor of Pharmacology & Officer-in-charge,Dept. of PharmacyJawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & ResearchPondicherry 605

006India