From history, we learn that wars and disasters have been part of our human existence and account for the highest cases of mortality rate. This has prompted the public health sector to develop interventions methods in reducing the consequences of wars and disasters. According to Leaning and Guha-Sapir (2013), every year, approximately three-hundred million people live in areas that are prone to war and 217 million are affected by disasters. In the case of war, people are affected in various ways such as casualties, exposure to harmful chemicals, and displacements.
Recently, the Syrian administration led by Bashar al-Assad was accused of using chemical weapons against rebels in Douma region which left many civilian casualties. Although the administration denied the allegations, some preliminary tests indicated that there were traces of Chlorinated organic substances. Often, some public health professionals fear to offer their services in war zone areas and as a result, people lack proper medical care. Thus, the threat posed by the war on health safety has forced a lot of public health agencies to intervention tools. According to Wiist et al. (2014), in 2009 the APHA (American Public Health Association) approved a policy defining specific roles of health practitioners preventing armed war. The policy also directed the training of health students on how to negotiate with warring parties so as to provide healthcare services.
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Disasters can either be natural or man-made. However, despite the type of disaster, they have a negative impact on our health. For instance, in 1986, there was a nuclear disaster at one of the plants in Chernobyl. Due to the disaster, people around the area had to be evacuated because exposure to the radiation would either result in death or other infections such as cancer. Disasters are causing a major concern in public health especially gradual increases in the recent past. Some of these disasters such as wildfires are destroying forests and polluting the environment in general. This is mainly attributed to global warming.
References
Leaning, J., & Guha-Sapir, D. (2013). Natural disasters, armed conflict, and public health. New England journal of medicine , 369 (19), 1836-1842.
Wiist, W. H., Barker, K., Arya, N., Rohde, J., Donohoe, M., White, S., ... & Hagopian, A. (2014). The role of public health in the prevention of war: Rationale and competencies. American Journal of Public Health , 104 (6), e34-e47.
