Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7czq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T19:39:11.880Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Primary Health Care in War and Disaster and the NorAid System

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Rannveig Bremer Fjaer
Rannveig Bremer Fjaer*
Affiliation:
Joint Medical Services of the Norwegian Armed Forces
*
Joint Medical Services of the Norwegian Armed Forces Oslo mil/Huseby 0016 Oslo, Norway
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

When the infrastructure in a community is destroyed by manmade or natural disaster, even the simplest health services may be difficult to maintain. By the Alma Ata declaration, the World Health Organization (WHO) proclaimed, “Health for all by the year 2000.” The program is designed to cover the basic health needs as defined by the Primary Health Care (PHC) system. Therefore, a most important issue in a disaster, is to support, maintain, and rebuild the PHC system, to secure the population's basic health services.

Relevant and rapid aid is of great importance in disaster. The physical and psychological strain caused by disaster will increase the need for medical care compared to that during normal times. Child mortality and maternal complications will rise, Many of the 12 million children, who die every year, die as a result of war, refugee conditions, and/or other types of disaster.

The NorAid system is equipment composed to provide PHC, with special emphasis on vulnerable groups e.g., women and children. Provided the medical skills are available, it also may function as a hospital. The system already has been used in many countries, and has been found to be relevant, practical, and relatively cheap compared to the benefits achieved.

Keywords

disasterprimary health careunder-five mortality rate
Type
Special Report
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 12 , Issue 3 , September 1997 , pp. 10 - 15
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 1997

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Dunant, H: A Memory of Solferino. International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva 1986.Google Scholar
2. UNICEF: The State of the Worlds Children: 1994. Oxford University Press, 1994.Google Scholar
3. World Health Organization: From Alma Ata to the Year 2000, Reflections at the Midpoint. Geneve, 1988.Google Scholar
4. Abatt, F, McMahon, R: Teaching Health-care Workers. A Practical Guide. Macmillan Education, 1985.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5. Garfield, RM, Frieden, T, Vermund, SH: Health-related outcomes of war in Nicaragua. Am J Public Health 1987;77:614–618.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6. Noormahomed, CJ: The impact of war on children's health in Mozambique. Soc Science & Med 1993;36:843–848.Google Scholar
7. Kneller, RW, Ingolfsdottir, K, Revel, J-P: The mortality experience of Kurdish refugees remaining in Turkey. Disasters 1992;16;249–254.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8. Greenough, WB: Oral rehydration therapy. Lancet 1995;345:1568–1569. Letter.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9. Denny, FW, Loda, FA: Acute respiratory infections are the leading cause of death in children in developing countries. Am J Trop Med Hyg 1986;35:1–2.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10. Gove, S, Pio, A, Campbell, H, et al: World Health Organization guidelines in detecting pneumonia in children. Lancet 1991; 338(8780): 1453–1454. Letter.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
11. Bang, AT, Bang, RA, Tale, O, et al: Reduction in pneumonia mortality and total childhood mortality by means of community-based intervention trial in Gadchiroli, India. Lancet 1990;336:201–206.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12. De Ville de Goyet, C: Communicable diseases and epidemiological surveillance after sudden natural disasters. Medicine for Disasters 1988: pp 258–269.Google Scholar
13. UNFPA. The State of the Worlds Population: 1995. Oxford University Press, 1995.Google Scholar
14. Saenz, R. Bissell, RA: Paniagua, F. Post-disaster malaria in Costa Rica. Prehospital and Disaster Medicine 1995;10:154–60.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
15. Walker, P: Foreign military resources for disaster relief: An NGO perspective. Disasters 1992;16:152–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16. Noji, EK: Disaster medicine training for earthquakes. Newsletter, International Society for Disaster Med 1991;45:1–4.Google Scholar
17. Fjflr, RB: Health service to civilian Lebanese patients. Rev Int Serv Santé 1982;55:117–118.Google Scholar
18. World Health Organization: The use of essential drugs. Fourth Report of the WHO Expert Committee 1990:1–57.Google Scholar
19. World Health Organization: The New Emergency Health Kit. Geneve, 1992.Google Scholar