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CARE Works With Women in Haiti to Keep Disease at Bay
January 18, 2010CARE's disaster-response teams find themselves in a race against time in earthquake-ravaged Haiti, coaching survivors how to purify contaminated water and preparing hygiene kits to help prevent a secondary crisis: the outbreak of disease. The Haitian capital lacks sewer infrastructure. And the massive quake ruptured water lines, creating a perfect formula for the spread of water-borne disease, particularly as those left homeless are forced into close quarters with limited options for sanitation. Safe water is crucial for every survivor of Tuesday's quake – but especially for pregnant women, new mothers, and small children, said Dr. Franck Geneus, coordinator of CARE's health program in Haiti. Some 37,000 pregnant women in the disaster zone are in desperate need of food, clean drinking water and/or access to health care. "We are concerned that women may stop breastfeeding because they do not have enough food or water themselves," Geneus said. "That poses a huge risk to newborns." Full release.