U.N. agencies and two dozen or more international relief groups are part of the official “health cluster” operating in Myanmar that is providing care to Cyclone Nargis survivors and is treating the subsequent diseases and sicknesses brought on in the aftermath. Many other doctors and health practitioners are operating independently on an ad-hoc basis, according to published reports. According to the World Health Organization, about 50% of the health centers in the affected areas were damaged or destroyed by the cyclone.
Needs for medical and psychological care are dramatic due to the remoteness of many areas and the damages to the transportation infrastructure. Much of the Irrawaddy Delta area affected by the cyclone is endemic with Malaria, a mosquito-borne disease that claims a million lives annually. Dysentery, cholera, dengue, leptospirosis and snakebites are other health worries, along with injuries and scrapes suffered during the high winds and storm surge. Some reports make mention of people who were swept miles from their homes and yet were still able to survive.
In addition to the physical trauma and affliction from disease, the WHO anticipates 30-50% of the cyclone affected population could suffer psychological distress, based on the WHO’s experience with other disaster relief operations. WHO has provided financial and operational support to 350 rapid response teams and medical teams of the Ministry of Health, Myanmar. The government reportedly claims that 122 teams local medical teams are operating.
Following up on our compilation of reports on the Irrawaddy Division, in this report we focus on Yangon (Rangoon) Division. According to one report, Hlaing Tharyar, North and South Dagon, Shwepyithar, Dawpone, Dala, Seikkyi Kanaungdo, Thanlyin and Kyauktan areas were among the hardest hit by the cyclone.
Yangon City and Division – PDF Map (1.4MB)
Medicins Sans Frontiers (MSF)- has a mental health officer in Yangon who is setting up a counseling service in Yangon and is investigating the possibility of setting up a similar service in the Delta. Unicef reportedly has 7 public health officers in the division “for ongoing assessments, provision of necessary health and sanitation supplies, responding to emerging needs and monitoring of UNICEF assistance.”
Dagon – (North and South Dagon Townships)
Better Burmese Health Care (BBHC) team (May 23 Report) “has set up 8 emergency clinic sites in South & North Dagon Townships that are providing acute medical care for the recently homeless and injured cyclone victims. The teams consisting of 20 doctors & 20 non medical volunteers are providing acute medical care as well as surveillance to prevent outbreak of infectious diseases. To date we have treated over 2000 patients.”
Kungyangon:
Reportedly the hardest hit area in Yangon Division, with 5,000 deaths, given it’s proximity to the bay and the Irrawaddy Delta. Part of the 50 member Chinese team of medics is operating in Kungyangon (with the other part in Dedaye, across the river). A team from the Association of Medical Doctors of Asia (AMDA) is also operating there with 17 members, 5 doctors, 2 health assistants, 1 midwife, 3 nurses, 1 coordinator, 4 health assistants, and 1 logistic assistant. As of May 20 they were working in Taw Kuu under the coordination of the Township Medical Office of Kungyangon Township. Their team reportedly plans to split into two to extend their coverage areas to Dayae Lu RHC and Let Khoke Gon SH (Station Hospital) sections as soon as they complete the work in Taw Kuu.
A report of May 20th reports that electricity still had not been restored in the area.
(From a May 13 report)
A makeshift clinic set up in a community hall downtown was packed with hundreds of patients. There were no confirmed infectious diseases for now, but more and more patients were said to be complaining about high fever and headaches. There was also a dire shortage of medical assistance. Near the clinic, a street vendor named Soe (39) said, “You have to wait three to four hours to get treatment.” He added medical supplies arrive once a day, but there’s just not enough to meet the demand. The only medical personnel in Kungyangon were medics from a military hospital, but other volunteer workers were unable to get in.
Kyauktan
A Lao medical team is operating somewhere in Kyauktan. Also:
So far, foreign agencies have reached about only 100,000 of the homeless to provide them with basic shelters.
People in Kyauktan appear to have given up waiting for help, and despite their personal tragedies, have gotten on with the task of trying to make some money to rebuild their homes and lives.
“When it rains, my son and I sit in a corner and hold an umbrella.
Twante (Twantay) – A May 18 Report says:
“Normally we scold patients if they don’t change clothes for children when it’s wet, but they don’t have a choice,” said the doctor, who declined to give her name, fearing government reprisal. “Even if they change, it’s wet again.”
As word spread that three local female doctors had set up a makeshift clinic at a Buddhist monastery, about 300 people emerged from tattered shacks for treatment over two hours.
They said the cold rains had been relentless and complained of everything from fever to diarrhea on the outskirts of the country’s largest city of Yangon, part of the worst-hit areas that have been off-limits to foreign aid workers.
Tags: Better Burmese Health Care, Burma, Dagon, Doctors Without Borders, health, Kungyangon, Kyauktan, Myanmar, Rangoon, Twantay, Unicef, Yangon
