Country Profile: Colombia

Colombia's National Disaster Program submitted the following report of recent activities:

· support of and participation in the elaboration of a proposal to place the disaster preparedness program within the national health system structure at each level;

· training sessions at regional hospitals in Cundinamarca to prepare updated hospital preparedness plans, an inventory of local resources, and a vulnerability analysis for each institution;

· seminars, meetings and workshops on emergency health management after natural disaster which included work groups, simulation exercises, drills and evaluations;

· meetings with representatives of international organizations and the private sector to explore both technical cooperation and economic support for program activities;

· seminar on psychosocial care in crises and disasters which used experiences from the Nevado del Ruiz volcanic eruption to prepare recommendations on improving the mental health of survivors;

· seminar on the development of guidelines for preparing vulnerability analyses and regional hospital emergency plans;

· audiovisual material requested by the regional health services, universities and institutions has been duplicated and distributed and is being used to support workshops in disaster preparedness.

For further information on Colombia's national disaster program contact:

Coordinador Nacional, Plan Nacional de Preparativos para. Desastres, Ministerio de Salud, Apartado Aéreo 12226, Bogotá, D.E. Colombia.

Emergency Health Management in Large Urban Areas

Latin America is experiencing an explosive rate of population growth in many of its large metropolitan areas. Mexico City, São Paulo, Lima - to name a few - all feel the burden of providing adequate health care for the growing numbers who require them. The rate at which the population is growing overall, coupled with the demographic shift from rural to urban areas, has made many cities, which only a short time ago could manage these problems, more vulnerable than ever.

These emerging and growing metropolitan areas share a similar vulnerability to disasters-both natural and technological. This was the theme of a recent PAHO workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina from 9-11 December on Emergency Health Management and Planning in Large Metropolitan Areas. More than 70 participants from Latin American cities, as well as experts from Europe, Africa, Asia and North America attended the workshop, whose main objectives were to:

· promote a multisectoral approach to disaster prevention, preparedness and response in large cities;

· provide a forum for exchanging information and experience among planners and emergency experts in large metropolitan areas of Latin America;

· stimulate direct cooperation among cities with common problems.

Below is a synopsis of the recommendations presented by the work groups that met during the meeting.

To improve management in times of natural disasters, such as floods or earthquakes, the groups recommended:

· creating an inter-agency communication system with one institution coordinating all actions;
· promoting or improving intersectoral cooperation;
· stimulating active community participation;
· strengthening the training of personnel;
· assessing vulnerability and designing hazard maps;
· encouraging the print and broadcast media to become part of national emergency committees to improve dissemination of information in times of disaster.

The work groups also discussed the threats of manmade disasters to large urban areas. One of the most prominent is aircraft accidents. The groups recommended that:

· the health sector actively participate in formulating airport safety plans;

· airports have the minimum medical equipment and personnel necessary to handle the initial response to aircraft accident;

· airports in large cities continually exchange updated information;

· the hospitals surrounding the airport incorporate mass casualty management into their hospital preparedness plans.