The National Public Health Laboratory of Haiti confirmed two cases of cholera over the weekend in Port-au-Prince and is investigating numerous suspected cases in the capital’s metropolitan area, eight of whom have died.
“The UN is ready to deploy emergency response teams with the aim of supporting the affected communities as soon as safe access is guaranteed and [desbloqueen] fuel supplies,” the United Nations Secretary-General said on Monday.
In a statement, António Guterres expressed great concern for the health and safety of the population in Haiti and requested immediate and unrestricted access to all Haitian territory to facilitate the delivery of fuel for humanitarian purposes.
Fuel deliveries have been blocked in port since mid-Septemberaffecting both the daily life of Haitians, as well as the ability of UN workers, other organizations and the international community to respond to the serious crisis that the country is going through.
Guterres urged all parts of the political and social spectrum to work together in this moment of crisis in order to guarantee that the advances made in the last twelve years in the fight against cholera are not lost or deteriorate.
Mitigate the risks
The UN is located carefully monitoring the situation and supports the government’s efforts to contain the outbreak and launch a response focused on limiting the spread of cholera and informing the population about the measures that must be taken at the domestic level to protect themselves from infection.
To this end, staff on the ground have highlighted the urgency of guaranteeing safe access to risk areas, especially those where cases have been confirmed or suspected, with the intention of mitigating the factors that increase the possibility of a large outbreak of the disease.
For now, the UN plans expand surveillance and increase provision of water and sanitationopen treatment centers and strengthen case management.
The detected cases were identified using the cholera Surveillance Mechanism, established by the Haitian authorities and supported by the United Nations.
Precautionary measures
For now, the UN resident coordinator’s office last night urged all Haitians to remain vigilant and implement precautions prevent contagion in the community.
The recommended precautionary measures are:
- boil water to drink or cook
- handwashing regularly with soap and boiled or chlorinated water
- protect food of rodents and insects
It also urges anyone with symptoms of acute watery diarrhea and vomiting to seek medical attention immediately and to stay hydrated with a homemade serum that is prepared with a liter of boiled water, six teaspoons of sugar and half a teaspoon of salt.
Infants, for their part, should receive a minimum of half a liter of oral rehydration salts per day, while children should drink one liter and adults three liters per day.
