Haiti October 2022. Cholera Erupts in Haitian Prison. Health Equity in Whole Community.

 

Cholera Erupts in Haitian Prison Cholera has hit a Haitian prison where nearly 4,000 people are crowded into a facility built for 800.  Up to 80 people have died in National Penitentiary since last week, and hundreds more could die within days unless prisoners are released immediately and given medical care, write a quartet of Haiti experts in The Nation. Officially, only 18 deaths have been confirmed nationwide, along with 200+ hospitalizations, since last week’s announcement of the country’s first cholera deaths in 3 years, per the AP. The authors, led by Partners In Health’s Loune Viaud, underscore the prisoners’ extreme vulnerability to cholera, with many severely malnourished amid major shortages of food, water, and health care.   Risk of spread: Stopping the outbreak in the prison is also critical to protecting the surrounding community, with jails long recognized as “epidemic engines,” The Nation authors note.   And there’s no excuse—cholera is preventable. The authors call on Haitian authorities to urgently prioritize essential interventions—and international actors to help supply the resources for these steps: Emergency medical care including oral rehydration treatment and/or administration of intravenous fluids and antibiotics in severe cases Cholera vaccination to interrupt transmission Medical tents with necessary isolation facilities and treatment infrastructure and emergency water and sanitation Black Emergency Managers Association International Washington, D.C. bEMA International Cooperation, Collaboration, Communication, Coordination, Community engagement, and  Partnering (C5&P)   A 501 (c) 3 organization      “When children learn to devalue others, they can devalue anyone, including their parents.”