Blog 10: Typhoon Creates Health Crisis in the Phillipines

11/13/13
SOC 202
1:45pm

According to emergency crews, Typhoon Haiyan is a potential medical disaster for the Philippines. The Red Cross says it has ordered 10,000 body bags in preparation for the number of bodies it believes it will have to retrieve. The official death toll, currently in the hundreds, is likely to grow quickly as rescue crews are better able to assess the situation. Left behind are some 4.2 million people who have been affected by the storm. Many of these people are injured, thirsty or hungry. This storm has created serious food and water shortages. Along with these shortages, there are pools of standing and polluted water. Relief agencies are worried about outbreaks of disease and infections in the storm's wake .Medecins Sans Frontieres says in the first stage of its recovery efforts, it will work to keep infection rates down and then work to vaccinate people for tetanus. It will also provide ongoing psychological help to the victims of the disaster who will be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Medical supplies are also scarce. The few hospitals left standing have had to turn people away because they are overwhelmed with the injured. Many people desperate for medical attention have made their way to the airport, where the military is trying to administer medical care.

 

WHO is supporting the Philippines Department of Health to watch for disease outbreaks and other public health threats related to food scarcity, water contamination and other environmental hazards.

It is also helping the government coordinate the international assistance to make sure the field hospitals and medical teams and supplies go where there is the most critical need, and is re-establishing bases for the supplies that are coming in from all over the world. Food, water, hygiene kits, sanitation equipment, antibiotics, antifungal medications, chronic disease medicines, high-energy protein biscuits, wound care supplies, and pain relievers are being sent to the Phillipines.The government has declared a State of National Calamity, which among other powers gives the government price controls for goods including food. The Philippines does already have a medical infrastructure, however. this means that they do have medical staff with experience able to help.

 

One good thing that has come from this disaster is the collaboration of organizations and countries to aid all the Filipinos injured, hungry, homeless, or infected. The next step is figuring out just how many people are still out there needing help and then receiving an appropriate amount of aid from around the world.

 

By Jen Christensen

CNN.com

Wombs for Rent: India's Surrogate Mother Boomtown

Olivia Simpson
11/5/13
SOC 202
1:26 pm

Surrogacy in India is a huge business these days, thanks to the low cost of the procedure, availability of surrogates, and the fact that India is one of the few countries in the world that allows commercial surrogacy. The number of skilled doctors has made India popular for couples seeking someone to carry their baby for them.  Each surrogate mother earns around $8,000 a baby. For the surrogate mothers, this kind of money enables them to change the life for their husbands, their children, get a house, and educate their children. India has now taken steps to regulate the industry. It's banned foreign same-sex couples and single parents from hiring surrogates. A new proposal would require mothers be aged between 21 and 35. Critics call India's surrogacy clinics baby-making factories saying "Commercialization has led to a lot of financial exploitation of these women" making it like "an organ sale." Many local Indians look down on the process as well but the surrogates and families invloved appreciate the opportunities.

I think that this program is a good way of helping out families who can't conceive while helping poor families in India. I don't see any harm in this practice as long as the surrogate mothers are treated well and have given consent to carry. Results are that a family is given a child of their own and another family is payed for their services.

By Kevin Voigt -CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/03/world/asia/india-surrogate-mother-industry/index.html?hpt=he_c2

U.N. Confirms an Outbreak of Polio in Syria

Olivia Simpson
10/30/13
SOC 202
1:43pm

In Geneva on Tuesday the United Nations announced an outbreak of Polio in children in Syria. With population movements, this disease could easily spread so vaccination campaigns are being put into place. With thousands of refugees fleeing daily from Syria’s civil war to neighboring countries, the officials are also intensifying immunization efforts in six countries: Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Israel, and Turkey. Unicef said it had vaccinated about a million Syrian children this year. Officials speculate that a possible source may have been from jihadi fighters traveling to Syria from Pakistan which, with Afghanistan and Nigeria, are the only countries where the disease is still endemic. The outbreak of polio in Syria “shows you have to eradicate the disease in the endemic countries because from there it will spread no matter where you are,” said Mr. Rosenbauer from WHO's Global Polio Eradication Initiative. The Polio outbreak in Syria was a set-back but we are seeing significant progress in curbing the disease.

This outbreak is affecting many people -especially young children- in, not only Syria, but in other countries as well due to the massive amount of refugees escaping to other countries. The spread of this disease needs to be contained and I think that WHO is on the right path by providing vaccinations and launching a campaign against the disease.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/30/world/middleeast/un-confirms-polio-outbreak-in-syria.html?ref=world&_r=0

By Nick Cumming-Bruce

Ex-Patients Police Mexico's Mental Health System

Olivia Simpson
10/23/13
1:46pm


In Mexico City, a group of former patients examined the grounds of a psychiatric hospital and documented its conditions. They formed this movement to to hold the mental health system in Mexico accountable for a record of neglect and abuse and to protect their rights. There is a growing number of people with severe mental illnesses who are not being taken seriously. The president of Mexico has promised to clean up the mental health system and signed a bill to "relieve overcrowding, improve treatment, and reduce the stigma of mental illness" by reintegrating people with these disorders into the general population. But experts are saying that these attempts are failing because they are focusing on short-term improvements instead of the development of rehabilitation programs and long-term care. Hospitals inspected were found keeping patients indoors with no activities or in dirty rooms while doing little to improve their facilities. In Mexico mental health issues are misunderstood but efforts are being made to empower sufferers of psychological disorders.

The fact that many patients are experiencing mistreatment and little human contact is upsetting. Those with mental disorders should be handled with care and respect. The treatment these patients in Mexico are recieving is a violation of their human rights. It is good that these hospitals are being inspected because change needs to happen. People with mental disorders deserve just as much care as everyone else.

the New York Times by Karla Zabludovsky

30,000 May Carry Human Form of Mad Cow Disease

Olivia Simpson

10/17/13

1:03pm

Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) is the human form of the fatal brain-wasting disease found in cows.  According to a study recently published in the United Kingdom, about 30,000 people in Britain are carriers of this disease. Researchers studied appendix samples from 32,441 people and found 16 that tested positive for vCJD. Considering  that the population of the United Kingdom is a little over 60 million, that means about 1 in 2,000 people - or roughly 30,000 people total - have it. Researchers believe there is an 8 year incubation period for the disease and there are at least three different forms of the prion protein linked to vCJD. This explains why so many people haven’t gotten sick yet.

The big concern here is that the carriers may transmit the disease. Since there is no blood test to detect vCJD, someone could unknowingly pass the disease on to others. According to the article, there are still a number of questions that need to be answered. The researchers and WHO believe that we need to start taking precautions to secure blood supply to prevent the spread of the disease. This could be costly but it is needed to prevent future cases. Since this disease is so detrimental, and apparently prevalent, funding and prevention of disease transmission need to increase.

http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2013/10/15/30000-may-carry-human-form-of-mad-cow/?hpt=he_c2

Red Cross In First Britain Food Aid Since WWII

Olivia Simpson

10/11/13

5:09 pm

            In London, the Red Cross announced that they are going to collect and distribute food aid in Britain this winter for the first time since World War II as the financial crisis and austerity hit the poor. Volunteers from the British Red Cross are going to launch a campaign in supermarkets where they will ask shoppers to donate dry and canned foods that will be distributed by British charities. A representative from Red Cross claims that they agreed to help on the basis of “strong evidence of an increased need for support on food poverty issues”. The charity has provided food to refugees and flood victims but has not taken part in any nationwide food distribution since WWII. The charity said 5 million people live in poverty in Britain today, out of a total population of 63.7 million.

            It is good that the British Red Cross is taking action on food poverty issues because it is one that hasn’t been well addressed since WWII. For this organization, this is just the beginning. They have begun to consider whether they ought to be doing more on today’s food poverty challenge and it looks like they are headed in the right direction by providing aid. A lack of food is detrimental to families and nations. More organizations should follow the British Red Cross’s lead and begin to help.

http://news.yahoo.com/red-cross-first-britain-food-aid-since-wwii-174116412.html

Coca-Cola Plans Kiosks With Water and Internet

Olivia Simpson

10/02/2013

4:30 pm

                The Coca-Cola Company plans to build 150 kiosks in 20 countries that will offer water, electricity, and internet connections. The announcement was made at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting. Currently there is one kiosk set up in Heidelberg South Africa. It is a shipping container with solar panels for power, a satellite dish for wireless communication, and a water distiller. The setup costs for these kiosks are in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Coca-Cola hopes that the volume of these kiosks will lower the price of each and that women will be the ones running the kiosks.  The products and services the company will charge for is so far undetermined. Potentially, they could store vaccines and offer health education without cost while asking people to pay for water and cellphone charging.

                Soft drink companies, such as Coca-Cola, are often accused of contributing to the obesity epidemic by expanding their line of products to less-developed countries with poor health education or health care. Coke’s executives argue that their kiosks will supply clean water while promoting the business of small entrepreneurs. I think that, even though this is just another way for Coca-Cola to make millions, it is a good project they are starting. Providing clean drinking water to countries and locations that don’t have it available is good. I’m not sure how much the cost of getting fresh water at these kiosks will be but, hopefully, it will be affordable. Including wireless connections at the kiosks will promote more globalization and education as well.

By Donald G. McNeil Jr.  10/01/2013

The New York Times –the Science Times

Blog 3: Magnets Fail to Relieve Pain

Olivia Simpson 5:01pm 09/26/13

The copper bracelets and magnetic wrist straps people have been using to alleviate the pain of arthritis have been declared useless by British researchers. In their randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study, the researchers randomized patients to receive four treatments. These were wearing a powerful magnetic strap, a weak magnetic strap, a nonmagnetic strap, and a copper bracelet. The patients wore the bracelets for 5 weeks and reported pain levels using a visual scale and recorded how often their joints felt tender and swollen. The researchers used questionnaires and tested for inflammation. They found no significant differences in any of the measures regardless of what the patients were wearing. As placebos, the bracelets have some benefits but, as treatments, they do no good.

            This article is interesting because the research completely disproves the medical use of these bracelets. It brings about the question of whether we should allow patients that swear by these products to live in blissful ignorance or if we should provide them with the facts. On one hand, I think that the ethical thing to do is provide these patients with the facts. It would keep them from buying useless products but would put whatever corporation makes them out of business. If we let these arthritis patients believe that these bracelets are helping them, however, it could benefit their health via the placebo effect. Ultimately, the research was published so I guess the researchers asking this question decided to provide the public with the truth that these customary bracelets are not working.

-NY Times (Science Times) article by Nicholas Bakalar 09/24/13

Millions at Risk as China's Prosperity Brings Diabetes Epidemic

Olivia Simpson

09/19/13

1:28pm

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/millions-at-risk-as-chinas-prosperity-brings-diabetes-epidemic-8798756.html

Twelve percent of adults in China are suffering from Diabetes and most of them are unaware they have it. The Journal of the American Medical Association has just published results of a survey for diabetes conducted in China in 2010, revealing a shocking prevalence of the obesity-linked type 2 diabetes. This type of diabetes increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and kidney failure. Almost one in three of the world’s diabetes sufferers are in China. Because of the rising prosperity in China, Chinese people are transitioning into less healthy eating habits. The researchers warn that this could get worse in China and that, without an effective national intervention, China could face “a major epidemic of diabetes-related complications” including cardiovascular disease, stroke, and chronic kidney disease.

            From reading this article, it’s easy to see how our American habits have so quickly spread to other countries. With globalization and expansion of industries (including fast-food restaurants), we’re seeing a lot of influence on health practices and diet habits. I think the biggest issue here is that the people of China, just like the people of America, are just consuming too much unhealthy food as a result of their changing lifestyles. This is where global health comes in to play in working to create a health-promoting environment that encourages self-management and better public health services. If the right measures are taken, I think that this problem in China –as well as in the U.S. - can be fixed. It’s interesting to me how rapidly China is assimilating and becoming more like America. I was a little shocked to read about this but it actually does not surprise me given how involved China and America have become. I hope that this diabetes epidemic can be helped because I’d hate to see another country with the same health problems we have.

Ill, Desperate And in Search Of Stem Cells

Olivia Simpson
09/13/2013
12:44 pm

Science Times

The New York Times

Ill, Desperate And in Search Of Stem Cells

By Laura Beil

In Tijuana, Mexico, Dr. Lopez runs an institute where patients are being treated using adult stem cell methods. Scientists have discovered that fat, bone marrow, and other parts of the body contain stem cells, that rejuvenate themselves in the tissues in which they are found. Questions have arisen about the proof and safety of these procedures. But there is a rise of an international industry catering to hopeful customers willing to pay thousands of dollars.

            Dr. Lopez claims that scientists in Mexico lack the government research support available in the United States, which has left him no choice but to charge his patients. But American doctors believe that, if the stem cell business “continues to flourish without proper scrutiny,” then research progress will suffer and funding may plummet.

            There is little evidence to indicate whether adult stem cell treatments are working. Dr. Lopez says he is trying to publish data from the 125 patients he as treated so far but he faces the struggle of being in Tijana. This week, the International Society for Stem Cell Research is to release a statement declaring the use of stem cells outside scientific settings to be “a threat to patient welfare, autonomy, and to the scientific process.”

            From this article, one can connect the issue of practicing this type of medicine in Mexico to Globalization and the spread of companies and services around the world. The article mentions that a lot of American doctors these days, especially in this field of research, are going to places out of the country like Mexico to do their clinical trials because it is cheaper. Though this may affect how people look at the legitimacy of the trials and services, it is more economically sound for the clinical trial runners. Thus, then trend will probably keep occurring.

Blog 1: Test

Summary:

!25 to 150 summary

Analysis:

125 to 150 analysis


Jason Transou
08-21-13
9:52 am

http://www.daynews.com/world/society/2013/08/pro-mujer-helps-struggling-women-in-latin-america-22543.