Public
Health International volunteers have participated in the International relief
arena for over 20 years. PHI
volunteers develop public health programs for international relief agencies to
prevent disease and death from unsafe water and unsanitary sewage disposal in
times of natural disaster and in war-torn locations all over the world.
Rather
than developing international relief programs on its own, PHI provides
volunteers who are registered public health professionals to both governmental
and non-governmental (NGO) international relief agencies, including:
-
International Rescue Committee (IRC)
- American Refugee Committee
(ARC)
- Medecins Frontieres/Doctors
Without Borders (MSF)
- World Vision (WV)
- Concern
- Save the Children
- US State Department
Water and Sanitation for
Health (WASH)
- US Agency for International
Development (USAID)
- United Nations High
Commissioner For Refugees (UNHCR).
In
this way PHI is able to provide desperately needed public health intervention
programs far beyond PHI’s individual capabilities. This method also prevents PHI from duplicating programs,
from participating in costly competition and provides for the most efficient
application of each project dollar.
Public Health International has cooperated with the
following international relief agencies:
American Rescue Committee
Cambodia (1991)
Public Health International volunteers developed and operated public and environmental health programs in refugee camps throughout Cambodia.
Iraq-Turkey (1991)
PHI volunteers developed public health programs in the
Kurdish refugee camps on the Iraq-Turkey border.
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Water distribution station under construction
in a Kurdish refugee camp in Turkey, in 1991.
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Tanzania (1993)
PHI volunteers developed and operated public and
environmental health programs to serve Rwandan refugees in camps throughout the
country.
Association of
Pakistani Physicians of North America
Pakistan (1989-1990)
Public Health International provided
consultants to develop public and environmental health programs in eight rural
villages in the Northwest Territories of Pakistan.
Benevolent Foundation
Zaire (1987)
PHI volunteers designed and
implemented the construction of a wastewater disposal system for the largest
hospital in central Zaire. PHI
volunteers also designed and implemented a sanitation training program for
hospital personnel.
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PHI volunteer Derek Pell with an injured Rwandan
refugee in Zaire.
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Communicable Disease Center
Somalia (1992-1993)
A Public Health International board member went to
Somalia as an employee of the Communicable Disease Center (CDC) to evaluate the
health conditions of the war torn population there.
Haitian American Friendship
Foundation
Haiti
(1989)
PHI volunteers designed and
arranged for the construction of an on-site sewage disposal system to serve a
four hundred student school, seven faculty living units and a new
administration building located in the central Haitian highlands.
International Rescue Committee
Sudan (1984-1991)
PHI volunteers developed and
operated public health programs in Ethiopian refugee camps in Sudan.
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Hundreds of thousands of
Ethiopian refugees fled into Sudan to escape war and starvation. PHI volunteers worked to establish a
public health and sanitation infrastructure. Here we have Ethiopian refugees constructing latrines,
Gardarif, Sudan.
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Thailand (1979-1983)
PHI volunteers developed public health programs in the
Cambodian refugee camps along the Thai border.
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With the construction of
latrines, proper garbage disposal facilities and the distribution of safe
water PHI volunteers were able to close the malaria hospital and drop the
death rate from 80/day to one-three/week in Sakao, Thailand, 1980.
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Iraq-Turkey (1991)
PHI volunteers developed public health programs in the
Kurdish refugee camps on the Iraq-Turkey border.
The Harvard Project
New Russian Republics (1991)
PHI provided a public health
consultant to meet with members of the governments of the new Russian Republics
to discuss public and environmental health concerns facing their new
governments and to set short, medium and long term environmental and public
health goals and objectives.
Intertact
Albania (1995)
PHI provided a public health
volunteer to develop water treatment, sewage disposal and general public health
and sanitation programs for schools throughout the country.
Bangladesh (1992-1993)
PHI volunteers developed
public health and environmental programs in refugee camps occupied by the
Rohingya Muslim refugees fleeing the conflict in Myanmar (Burma).
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In Bangladesh, PHI
volunteers had to deal with unprecedented rainfall requiring special care
when placing latrines. Here we
have a four holler, one of the several thousand installed in 14 camps in
southern Bangladesh.
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Bosnia (1992-1993)
PHI volunteers developed
public health and environmental programs in villages occupied by victims of the
Croatian War and advised officials of cities ravaged by the war regarding
public health.
Georgia (1993)
PHI volunteers developed public and environmental
health programs in cities occupied by refugees from the military conflicts in
Georgia. The volunteers also
advised local government officials regarding public health needs.
Zaire-Rwanda (1994)
Public Health International
volunteers developed and operated public and environmental health programs in
refugee camps occupied by Rwandan refugees.
Georgia (1995)
PHI volunteers developed public and environmental
health programs in cities occupied by refugees from the military conflicts in
Georgia. The volunteers also
advised local government officials regarding public health needs.
Azerbaijan (1995)
PHI volunteers developed public health and sanitation
programs for refugees from the Russian-Chechnyan Civil War and the
Azerbaijan-Armenian War.
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In Azerbaijan, PHI
volunteers worked with refugees from two wars: Chechnya and Azerbaijan. Here we have a latrine slab (floor)
being brought into place on a donkey.
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Bosnia (1995)
PHI volunteers developed
public health and environmental programs in villages occupied by victims of the
Croatian War and advised officials of cities ravaged by the war about public
health needs.
Kosovo (1999)
PHI volunteers developed
public health and sanitation programs for the refugees from the war in
Kosovo. The volunteers also
assisted in countries adjacent to Kosovo with the development of pubic health
and sanitation programs.
Medecins San Frontieres (France)
Bangladesh (1992-1993)
PHI volunteers developed
public and environmental health programs in 14 refugee camps occupied by
Rohingya Muslim refugees fleeing the conflict in Myanmar (Burma).
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The development of safe
domestic water sources was the number one public health program for PHI
volunteers working in the Myanmar Refugee Camp in Bangladesh.
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Medecins San Frontieres (Belgium)
Rwanda:
(1993-1994)
Public Health International volunteers developed public
health and sanitation programs in Rwandan refuge centers in Rwanda.
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In Rwanda, hundreds
of thousands of refugees were displaced from their homes. Many fled into Zaire and others found
shelter wherever they could.
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Mercy Corps
Honduras (1986)
Public Health International
provided pubic and environmental health specialist to survey twenty rural
villages and recommend and design sanitation and public health programs to
lower the incident of preventable diseases.
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Many Honduran villages need help in developing infrastructures for providing
basic public health and sanitation programs. A PHI volunteer provided assistance in 20 of those
villages.
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Vietnam (1993)
Public Health International provided a public health
consultant to evaluate and outline solutions to the public health and
sanitation needs of an orphanage north of Saigon.
Georgia (1993)
Public Health International provided a public health
consultant to develop a strategy for developing public health and sanitation
programs for the refugees scattered throughout the country.
World Vision
Ethiopia (1984-1985)
Public Health
International provided public health volunteers to develop public health and
environmental programs in refugee camps throughout Ethiopia.
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Public Health
International will continue to strive to provide assistance directly and
indirectly through cooperative efforts with other international relief
agencies until in is impossible to take a picture like the one above.
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