Cholera strikes in Haiti.

(Source: http://haitichildrenfoundation.org/)

    What is an island when its people struggle to move on and can't find help? Haiti is known for it’s very poor background. More than 70% of the people in Haiti

were living on less than $US2 per day. 86% of the people were living in tightly packed, bad quality, concrete buildings. Half of the people in Port-Au-Prince had no access to latrines and only one-third has access to tap water. ( Disasters Emergency Committee) Haiti was already falling apart with the violence that struck in 1994 due to the reason that the mayor was decapitated because of the unfairness towards its people.  

     In 2010 Haiti was hit by an Earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 in Port-Au-Prince. After that things changed dramatically. 3,500,000 people were affected by the Earthquake, 220,000 people were estimated to have died and 300,000+ people were

injured ( Jazeera, Al ) .  In October of 2010 an outbreak of Cholera had infected more than 216,000 people but only 5,899 died. ( Disasters Emergency Committee) Things weren't the same after this event. Not only did it affect the water quality but many were exposed to harmful diseases that till this day only has decreased about 1 third than it was back then. 

(Source-http://ratedreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/MountainsBeyondMountains1.jpg)

     As a student, Global issues are not a topic we get to hear everyday. We know of things that happen in our country but not of the things outside that we all should care about. A book released by Tracy kidder called "Mountains Beyond Mountains" caught my attention when i read that Paul Farmer a professor of medical anthropology in the department of social Medicine of Harvard medical school decided to take his time and help these people. Dr.Farmer. He once said "I can't sleep. There's always somebody not getting treatment". (Paul Farmer, 24) This really bothered him that just because one group of people didn't have the necessary requirements to receive treatment were put aside. He couldn't sleep with the thought he someone could get sick if he didn't do a thing to avoid it. The truth is, Paul really cared about the people that were sick. he had put his mind into it and had set a goal to help every person possible even if he had to pay and risk it all. He said "The problem is, if I don't work this hard, someone will die who doesn't have to. That sounds megalomaniacal. I wouldn't have said that to you before I'd taken you to Haiti and you had seen that it was manifestly true." (Paul Farmer, 191) 

     Like him we as individuals can help by doing small stuff that can mean a lot to them. Campaigns as the (DEC) Disasters emergency committee had made future responses

and recoveries such as:

       • Improving the water supply of 340,000 people

       • Supplying drugs to five cholera treatment facilities serving 18,000 people

       • Providing free medical care to 39,000 people

Other campaigns are helping as well like “The Haiti foundation" Who are always looking for donations.

To help visit the website http://haitichildrenfoundation.org/how-you-can-help/
Or watch this video for more information on Paul Farmer in his quest to help children in Haiti. 
60 Minute- Dr. Farmer's Remedy

Bibliography-

Source 1 (Online)-  Disasters Emergency Comittee.  DEC, 2011.  Web.  May 27, 2013
http://www.dec.org.uk/haiti-earthquake-facts-and-figures

http://www.dec.org.uk/appeals/haiti-earthquake-appeal/case-study/haitians-beating-cholera



Source 2 (Online) - 

Jazeera,  Al “Haiti: Cholera victims give UN 60 days or lawsuit.” The Sentinel.  The Sentinel, May 08, 2013. Web.  May 29, 2013

http://www.defend.ht/politics/articles/judicial/4203-haitian-cholera-victims-give-un-60-days-or-lawsuit

Source 3 (Online)-  Priorities for Earthquake Recovery in Haiti.  The Lambi Fund of Haiti,  2013.  Web.  May 27, 2013

http://www.lambifund.org/about_history.shtml