Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and muscle cramps may also occur. Diarrhea can be so severe that it leads within hours to severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalance. This may result in sunken eyes, cold skin, decreased skin elasticity, and wrinkling of the hands and feet. Dehydration can cause the skin to turn bluish. Symptoms start two hours to five days after exposure.
Operation Blessing International Relief and Development Corporation (OB) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) humanitarian organization founded in the United States. Beginning in 1978, OBI has worked in more than 90 countries and every state. Implementing programs that provide disaster relief, medical aid, clean water, hunger relief, community development and orphan care, Operation Blessing is governed by a national board of directors.
Lutheran World Relief (LWR) is an international non-governmental organization that focuses on sustainable development projects and disaster relief and recovery. The organization was founded in 1945 to collect and send aid to people living in post-World War II Europe. Today, LWR helps communities living in extreme poverty adapt to the challenges that threaten their livelihoods and well-being, and responds to emergencies with a long-term view. It is a member of the Corus International family of faith-based international development organizations, which include IMA World Health, CGA Technologies, Ground Up Investing, and LWR Farmers Market Coffee.
The Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) is a rapidly deployable team of 200 Canadian Forces personnel. It provides assistance to disaster-affected regions for up to 40 days. DART's headquarters is located in Kingston, Ontario. DART was created by the Canadian government in 1996 in the aftermath of the inadequate response to the 1994 Rwandan genocide, when Canada's aid arrived after the peak of a cholera epidemic. The government determined that it would be of the utmost importance in many disasters if it was able to rapidly deploy a group of people until long-term aid arrived. DART has an annual budget of CA$500,000, although during specific incidents the Parliament of Canada can choose to temporarily allocate millions of dollars to DART to fund their response effort. For example, Operation Torrent, the aid mission to Turkey in the wake of the 1999 earthquake which left 17,000 people dead, saw CA$15 million used by DART in the response.
Partners In Health (PIH) is a Boston-based nonprofit health care organization founded in 1987 by Paul Farmer, Ophelia Dahl, Thomas J. White, Todd McCormack, and Jim Yong Kim.
Food For The Poor, Inc. (FFP) is an ecumenical Christian nonprofit organization based in Coconut Creek, Florida, United States that provides food, medicine, and shelter, among other services, to the poor in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Alight, formerly the American Refugee Committee (ARC), is an international nonprofit, nonsectarian organization that has provided humanitarian assistance and training to millions of beneficiaries over the last 40 years.
Urban Search and Rescue Virginia Task Force 1 or VA-TF1 is a FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force based in Fairfax County, Virginia. VA-TF1 is sponsored by the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.
World Concern is a Christian global relief and development organization operating in Africa, Southeast Asia and Haiti, with its headquarters located in Seattle, Washington. World Concern serves approximately 6 million people worldwide and has a staff of 877, with 846 of those being international and 31 based at headquarters.
Americares is a global non-profit organization focused on health and development that respond to individuals affected by poverty, disaster, or crisis. The organization addresses poverty, disasters, or crises with medicine, medical supplies and health programs.
Water For People was founded in 1991 by the American Water Works Association (AWWA) as a response to the increasing global water crises. It is a nonprofit international development organization that helps people in rural parts of developing countries achieve greater access to drinkable and potable water and sanitation facilities. It works to accomplish the United Nation's 6th Sustainable Development Goal: availability of clean water and sanitation and comprehensive monitoring of freshwater facilities for the progression of human health. They seek to address the issue of nonexistent and sub-optimal water and sanitation facilities across less-developed countries. With developing locally sustainable drinking water resources and sanitation facilities, Water For People also works to bring health and hygiene education programs to local districts. The non-governmental organization also works to empower and involve local governments, corporations, schools, homes, and individuals in the construction, financing, and maintenance of the water infrastructure. Water For People has established a year-round presence in 30 districts of nine developing countries, including Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Peru, India, Rwanda, Uganda and Malawi. In totality, Water For People reaches 4 million people.
The humanitarian responses by non-governmental organizations to the 2010 Haiti earthquake included many organisations, such as international, religious, and regionally based NGOs, which immediately pledged support in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Besides a large multi-contingency contribution by national governments, NGOs contributed significantly to both on-the-ground rescue efforts and external solicitation of aid for the rescue efforts.
Hope for Haiti is a non-profit organization based in Naples, Florida, USA, founded in 1989 by JoAnne Kuehner. The mission of the organization is to improve the quality of life for the Haitian people, particularly children, through education, healthcare, water, infrastructure and economy. In addition, Hope for Haiti has an emergency relief component and has responded to several natural disasters like the 2010 Haiti Earthquake and Hurricane Matthew since its founding.
The 2010s Haiti cholera outbreak is the first modern large-scale outbreak of cholera—a disease once considered beaten back largely due to the invention of modern sanitation. The disease was reintroduced to Haiti in October 2010, not long after the disastrous earthquake earlier that year, and since then cholera has spread across the country and become endemic, causing high levels of both morbidity and mortality. Nearly 800,000 Haitians have been infected by cholera, and more than 9,000 have died, according to the United Nations (UN). Cholera transmission in Haiti today is largely a function of eradication efforts including WASH, education, oral vaccination, and climate variability. Early efforts were made to cover up the source of the epidemic, but thanks largely to the investigations of journalist Jonathan M. Katz and epidemiologist Renaud Piarroux, today it is widely believed to be the result of contamination by infected United Nations peacekeepers deployed from Nepal. In terms of total infections, the outbreak has since been surpassed by the war-fueled 2016–2021 Yemen cholera outbreak, although the Haiti outbreak is still one of the most deadly modern outbreaks. As of August 2021 there have been no new cases of cholera in Haiti since February 2019.
Deep Springs International (DSI) is a US nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Léogâne, Haiti, which supports the establishment and expansion of Gadyen Dlo social enterprises. Gadyen Dlo has been produced and distributed in Haiti since 2002, originally supported by Emory University and the US Centers for Disease Control.
Emmanuel International Canada is a non-governmental, non-profit, evangelical Christian relief organization whose purpose is to strengthen and assist local churches in developing countries to holistically meet the social, physical, emotional and spiritual needs of their communities.
GlobalMedic is a non-sectarian humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization based in Etobicoke, Toronto, Ontario, Canada and the operational arm of the David McAntony Gibson Foundation (DMGF), a registered Canadian charity. It provides disaster relief to large scale catastrophes around the world and also carries out humanitarian capacity building programs in post-conflict nations. Time magazine recognized the work of GlobalMedic in its 2010 Time 100 issue. Rahul Singh, a Toronto paramedic, founded the David McAntony Gibson Foundation in 1998 in honour of a best friend who lost his life the same year.
Matthew 25: Ministries is an international humanitarian aid and disaster relief organization headquartered in Blue Ash, Ohio, USA. Matthew 25: Ministries provides humanitarian aid and disaster relief to the poor throughout the US and around the world. Matthew 25 collects excess products from corporations and manufacturers as well as the general public and ships these donations to those in need.
The Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti is a hospital in Deschapelles, Haiti. It was established in 1956 by Larry Mellon, who was inspired by Hôpital Albert Schweitzer and the life and philosophy of Albert Schweitzer.
The Catholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB) is an international, faith-based NGO, providing long-term, co-operative medical and development aid to communities affected by poverty and healthcare issues. It was established in 1912 and officially registered in 1928. CMMB is headquartered in New York City, USA, and currently has country offices in Haiti, Kenya, Peru, South Sudan, and Zambia.
