UN cites mental health care needs of ‘Sendong’ survivors

ILIGAN CITY, Philippines – The United Nations has called attention to the need for mental health care for survivors of the horrific flash floods spawned by Tropical Storm Sendong.

In its December 28 report, the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Action said provision of psycho-social support services to the evacuees was among “the key priorities” in disaster response actions.

The office noted that these services were limited to people staying in evacuation centers, saying these same services “must be expanded to include affected populations who have chosen to remain in their areas of origin or with relatives.”

The UN office’s December 26 report said its mental health care services have reached only “a small percentage of the affected people.”

The UN estimated that around 250,000 people were in need of humanitarian assistance in the face of the calamity.

Of these, 60 percent were concentrated in the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan. Over 54,000 people are staying in evacuation centers, which are mostly schools.

To step up psycho-social support for children, the United Nations Children’s Fund is training at least 100 volunteers who will be deployed for 10-day stints at various flood-hit areas.

Since Dec. 22, psycho-social teams consisting of 177 volunteers from the Department of Education, World Vision, Community and Family Services International, Plan International, Save the Children, and Xavier University are conducting sessions among affected school-aged  children “with the aim to prepare them for the resumption of classes” in  Cagayan de Oro.

From the evacuation centers, follow through sessions must be done with the chilren when they are already in schools as they might be uneasy in their current crowded temporary shelters, said Trevor Clark, UNICEF Chief of Office for Mindanao.

The sessions consist of activities that draw children to “share their experiences” in order to “restore their ability to express themselves,” which is a necessary step towards psychologically recovering from the “terrible events” they underwent, added Clark.

The UN estimates that there are some 123,3000 affected school children aged 3-15 years in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan alone.

Also, the UN noted a continuing lack of doctors “to ensure provision of round-the-clock health services.”

“Provision of regular consultative medical services for all affected is a priority,” the UN report said.

Most frequently reported health concerns in the crowded evacuation centers are acute respiratory infections, fever, open wounds, acute watery diarrhea and skin diseases. Leptospirosis and suspect measles cases have also been reported in some of the evacuation centers.

Two weeks into the disaster, the UN-OCHA said “humanitarian assistance is urgently required outside of the urban hubs of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan” especially by people in remote and isolated villages.

In Iligan, relief supplies for the five hinterland villages of Rogongon, Dulag, Panoroganan, Lanipao and Kalilangan have to be airlifted. The bridge that connects to these villages was destroyed.

Iligan City information officer Melvin Anggot said the air sorties were swings in the weather.

“Allegations that assistance is not being delivered to Muslim and indigenous communities remain unconfirmed; nonetheless, it is likely that these groups are not receiving as much support due to their remote location,” the UN report noted.