Typhoon Damrey has caused serious damages to medical infrastructures. Medical establishments are making great effort to prompt damage repair to assure the availability of medical emergency and treatment services...
Typhoon Damrey has caused serious damages to medical infrastructures. Medical establishments are making great effort to prompt damage repair to assure the availability of medical emergency and treatment services.
Though badly damaged by the storm, Ninh Ha Ward Medical Station, Ninh Hoa Town continues operating, doing the best it can with what it has to assure medical treatment and epidemic prevention. Its staff worked around the clock to ensure patients was taken care of before, during and after the typhoon. Emergency treatment was given to 9 patients amid the storm. The station has disinfected 300 wells, sprayed Chloramines B in markets, mobilized joint effort in clean-up after the typhoon for disease prevention and control, says Physician Nguyen Huu Tan, Chief of Ninh Ha Ward Medical Station.
According to Ninh Hoa Town Medical Station, 26/27 medical stations were damaged by the typhoon. “In spite of severe damages in infrastructures, the medical units are still operating with emergency treatment given to 125 injured. The town medical team in cooperation with medical stations have propagandized, provided Chloramines B and guided residents to join post-storm clean-up effort.
Khanh Hoa General Hospital has severe damage in infrastructures and facilities expected at VND2 billion. Dr. Nguyen Thi Phuong Mai, Vice-Director of Khanh Hoa General Hospital says, during the storm, the hospital gave emergency treatment to more than 150 patients. After the storm, the repair and clean-up work is underway. The hospital expects to get more funding to repair infrastructures and facilities, buy medicines and medicals in need.
The Ministry of Health provided Khanh Hoa medical sector with 20 kinds of medicines, 200,000 Chloramines B as disinfectants; 10 storm prevention and control devices, 50 safeguards; 2 electric generators and VND100 million in cash. Pasteur Nha Trang Institute donated 385kg of Chloramines B and supported disinfectantion, environmental hygiene and disease control and prevention.
According to statistics of Khanh Hoa Hospital of Tuberculosis & Lung Diseases, 6/10 rooms of Emergency Department, 8/10 rooms of Inpatient Treatment Department, 11/18 of Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis & Lung Diseases Department were badly damaged by the typhoon and cannot be used. The hospital has partly repaired the damage to continue providing medical services. Ninh Hoa General Hospital, Dermatology Hospital, Psychiatric Hospital, Van Ninh Hospital, Dien Khanh Hospital and general clinics also experienced great damage in infrastructures worth VND1-6 billion.
According to Bui Xuan Minh, Director of Khanh Hoa Department of Health, the disaster-preparedness helped the entire sector assure its health care and treatment with emergency treatment to 436 people during the typhoon. At present, great effort is being made to assure environmental hygiene and boost epidemic control and prevention. Up till now, 5,000 water wells have been disinfected. Thousands of households have been offered Chloramines B. Disinfectant spray has been used in markets and prone areas. As a result, no post-disaster epidemic, such as conjunctivitis, diarrhea, respiratory diseases, tinea pedis, cholera, dysentery, etc), food poisoning and so on has been reported in Khanh Hoa.
Cat Dan
Translated by N.T
