Tackling Cholera in Haiti: A Multi-Faceted Approach
The PLOS medical journals reflect on Haiti’s cholera epidemic, and the value of moving forward with an emphasis on holistic practice and research.
Almost three years ago, in May of 2011, PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases published a Viewpoints piece, Meeting Cholera’s Challenge to Haiti and the World: A Joint Statement on Cholera Prevention and Care, which urged the development of a “comprehensive, integrated strategy” in response to Haiti’s 2010 cholera epidemic. The Pan American Health Organization estimates that the outbreak now includes over 650,000 survivors and 8,100 fatal cases. Indeed, the epidemic has had enormous repercussions for a nation already facing the effects of the devastating 2010 earthquake.
At PLOS, research and opinion from across the medical journals, and this blog, have grappled with the issues raised by that first joint statement. The topics have ranged from an investigation of mass vaccination feasibility to an analysis of Haiti’s water-borne bacteria, and each article has helped to build an important new knowledge base. Though the task of ending cholera in Haiti remains daunting, this knowledge ensures that future efforts can be faster, more thorough, and ultimately, more successful.
From PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases
Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Cholera during the First Year of the Epidemic in Haiti
From PLOS Currents: Outbreaks
The Dry Season in Haiti: A Window of Opportunity to Eliminate Cholera
From PLOS Currents: Disasters
Communication Response to the 2010 Earthquake and the Subsequent Cholera Outbreak
From PLOS Pathogens
The 2010 Cholera Outbreak in Haiti: How Science Solved a Controversy
From Speaking of Medicine
Pathogens and People: Reflections from Haiti
MSF: Cholera Epidemics: Emergency Response in Haiti and Beyond