Manila: The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported a rise in births in areas in the Philippines that were affected by Typhoon Haiyan, almost a year after the caused much damage in the country’s central regions.
The international body, which is the United Nation’s public health arm, said that months after Haiyan (locally code-named “Yolanda”) came to the Philippines on November 8, 2013, they had noted the rise in births.
“There has been a rise in births — a trend that often occurs after an emergency,” WHO said.
“With each new life comes much joy and also a further increase in the demands for health care now and in the future,” it added.
Haiyan swept across the Philippines, affecting millions.
As international assistance began to pour in, WHO had been one of the first agencies on the ground, coordinating and marshalling resources for a quick and efficient response.
The organisation worked with the Philippine Department of Health (DOH) and coordinated over 150 foreign medical teams and moved more than 500 tonnes of medical supplies and equipment that arrived in response to the emergency.
Dr Julie Hall, WHO country representative in the Philippines, said that over the past 12 months the organisation has worked with the DOH and other health partners to rehabilitate facilities, donate equipment and scale up health services.
“To date there has been no major disease outbreak in the Haiyan affected areas while services such as reproductive health care, mental health provision and water quality testing are now available in areas that previous had none,” she said.
The aftermath of the disaster was also utilised by the WHO and the DOH to bolster health services in the affected areas and prepare for future similar occurrences.
“To ensure future resilience requires a robust health system with universal access to health care: a key DOH priority known as ‘Kalusugan Pangkalahatan’ [KP or Universal Healthcare]. Haiyan was a natural disaster of enormous proportions. It demanded we all rise to the challenge and work together to provide immediate health care and improve health services for the long term,” Hall said.
Hall also disclosed that while health concerns had been immediately addressed, thus preventing disease outbreaks another challenge that confronted WHO and Philippine health workers were the mental and psychological concerns that accompany disasters.
“Six to nine months after, mental health issues could become more prominent and there could be an increased level of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic disorder among Yolanda-affected population,” Hall said.
She said that while much had ben achieved in terms of physical health a year after Haiyan, a lot of people are still suffering from “their loss and the loss for the survivors can be overwhelming.”
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, more than 16 million people were affected by the disaster, with more than 6,200 dead, and four million displaced. Haiyan damaged over 2,000 health facilities in the Visayas region.
