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Thursday, December 23, 2010

Carol Goar: Christmas destination: Haiti to fight cholera (in the Toronto Star)

"On Dec. 2, Médicins Sans Frontières put out the call for health-care professionals who could leave on short notice and stay for a minimum of a month. They would be sent to one of MSF’s 31 cholera treatment centres, some of which are in remote areas still devastated by last January’s earthquake. They’d be part of a team of 150 MSF recruits and 1,000 Haitians, meaning they might not be working in their own language or practising alongside anyone they knew.

"The bulletin didn’t mention they’d be living in tents, but most will. It didn’t say the workload would be onerous, but with 135,000 Haitians already infected, they’ll have to treat hundreds of cholera victims a day. It didn’t allude to the anger and violence festering in the wake of last month’s election, but they’ll be working in an atmosphere of tension and instability. ...

"It took less than two weeks to come up with enough volunteers. ...

"With a full complement of recruits, MSF can now start bringing home the 25 exhausted Canadians who’ve been in Haiti since October setting up cholera treatment centres and rehydrating victims of the disease."

Full article: Goar: Christmas destination: Haiti to fight cholera.

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