The Round-up offers a weekly sample of what our sister Red Cross Societies are working on around the world.
PHILIPPINES: An outbreak of the deadly bacteria Leptospirosis has highlighted the dramatic and ongoing needs of the tens of thousands of people in northern Mindanao who were displaced and affected by Typhoon Washi. The Philippine Red Cross has deployed health staff and mobilized additional volunteers and resources in an effort to help limit the outbreak. Supplies of the antibiotic Doxycycline – enough for 2,600 people – have been sent from Manila to Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City, along with health education materials that will form the centerpiece of a soon to be launched public health campaign. Since Washi, the Philippine Red Cross has provided assistance to almost 90,000 people.
MAURITANIA: Malnutrition is a complex problem with causes that go beyond access to good food sources. Livelihoods, hygiene and education all play their part in helping families provide for themselves and prepare for those times when natural disasters decimate local food supplies. The IFRC has detected several cases of malnutrition in Mauritania during a food security assessment mission where teams use a basic toolkit to measure arm circumference, height gauge and scales. Measurements are taken from all children aged from six months to five years, and also breastfeeding mothers. If the arm circumference is less than 12.5 cm, the child is weighed to determine its weight for height ratio. If it is between 60 and 80 per cent of ideal weight, the child has moderate malnutrition. If it is below 60 per cent, they have severe malnutrition.
GLOSSARY:
ICRC = International Committee of the Red Cross
IFRC = International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies