Cholera Raises its Ugly Head In Haiti—Diarrhea, Dehydration and Death--Good People Trying To Help

Remember the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti that killed as many as 300,000 and displaced many more thousands? It was THE news story at the time of its occurrence and then it fell off the media map. Haiti is still in a heap of trouble and the many millions of the committed dollars to help the country are just now coming in. For a while, it seemed like much of the committed money simply was not showing up. However, it seems the "missing" money is appearing now and the good people of the world are still lending a hand to help a nation who has seen more than its share of misery.

Due to the earthquake, many in Haiti still live in tent-camps and sanitary conditions are poor. When sanitation is bad, major problems occur . . . such as cholera. Cholera is one of the major killers in the world. It causes severe diarrhea, which causes dehydration, which can kill. Cholera is a bacterial infection usually picked up by humans through contaminated water, usually contaminated by feces. In Haiti , it has killed 250 people and sickened more than 3,000. Officials worry that the squalid camps in Port-au-Prince where the population is 1.3 million, is a potential tragedy in the making. Up until recently, most cholera cases have been from the rural areas.

Due to advanced water treatment and sanitation practices Cholera is not seen in the US or most areas of the world. However, in many areas of Haiti, people fail to wash their hands, or simply cannot was them with clean water. Furthermore, many scoop up standing water and then wash fruits and vegetables with dirty water. These practices are ripe for disaster.

Aid workers are coaching thousands how best to avoid cholera. They are providing soap and water purification tablets and educating people about hygiene and the dreaded illness, cholera. Experts say effective sanitation practices, if instituted and adhered to in time, are usually sufficient to stop an epidemic.

I hope that with the help of others from a caring world Haiti will avert another human tragedy. What I see that makes me feel good is how so many people help other people in desperate need. Usually, we hear about how bad people are. That no one cares about others. That people are selfish. However, just recently, all the help those trapped miners in Chile received from anyone and everyone who could help reminded me of something. It showed me that people, deep down inside are not selfish and bad but good and will come to the help of others in time of need. No one needed to coax people to help those miners in Chile. They did it with a passion that was amazing to watch. In addition, no one has to be coaxed to help in Haiti either. It's in Man's blood to help others in need.