The World Health Organization (WHO) put the spotlight on World Health Day (April 7) by pointing out the large numbers of lives that can be saved during emergencies such as earthquakes, floods, and conflicts. The safety can be achieved through both better design and construction of health facilities, and by preparing and training health staff, a vital concern in light of the recent devastating earthquake in L'Acquila, Italy. World Health Day is being launched in China this year. An earthquake in May 2008 killed over 87,000 people and destroyed more than 11,000 health care facilities in China.

According to WHO's press release, the organization, part of the United Nations system, is recommending six core actions that governments, public health authorities and hospital managers can undertake to ensure health facilities are safe during emergencies. The six actions are:

--To assess the safety of hospitals;
--To protect and train health workers for emergencies, including infections disease outbreaks;
--To plan for emergency response;
--To design and build resilient hospitals as well as retrofitting existing health facilities to make them more resilient;
--To adopt national policies and programs for safe hospitals; and
--To protect equipment, medicines and supplies.

"With our world threatened by the harmful effects of climate change, more frequent extreme weather events and armed conflicts, it is crucial that we all do more to ensure that health care is available at all times to our citizens, before, during, or after a disaster," said WHO Director-General Dr Margaret Chan on the website.

WHO emphasizes in its press release that health facilities are often the first casualties of emergencies, including health workers killed and wounded, leaving services unavailable to treat survivors and that large investments of valuable health funding in health facilities and equipment destroyed. WHO describes actions that some countries have already taken. As example, for earthquake-prone Japan, Pakistan and Peru, hospitals have been built using efficient building standards that cause little additional costs and can withstand earthquakes. WHO urges that in international conflicts, hospitals and clinics should be allowed to function by all parties in line with international humanitarian law.

Dr. Eric Laroche, WHO Assistant Director-General for Health Action in Crises, stated in the press release, "The most expensive health facility is the one that fails, both in human and financial terms," Dr Laroche said. "We know we can do more to prevent our hospitals and clinics falling victim to emergencies. The time has come for action."

Based upon a press release by the World Health Organization.

More Industry Headlines