Nepal Disaster Response
Wednesday, May 13, 2015 - 9:00 a.m. PDT
A message from Dr. Michele Barry, Senior Associate Dean of Global Health and Director of the Center for Innovation in Global Health
Our hearts go out again to those in Nepal. Two earthquakes in less than a month’s time is two too many. Fortunately the epicenter of this second earthquake is in an area that is less populated.
Paul Auerbach, who is back from the April 25 quake, shared several first-hand accounts from his time on the ground, which are available here. Rebecca Walker remains in Nepal supporting the efforts of the Nepal Ambulance Service (NAS).
The Nepalese Ministry of Health recently asked that FMTs ready to deploy to Nepal should refrain from doing so as the current need had been met. Anyone interested in participating in the relief efforts in-person should keep apprised of the situation and do so in coordination with an official agency approved to be in Nepal.
As Paul reiterates in his most recent post, monetary donations will continue to be essential to sustaining response efforts and protecting the health of Nepal’s people. Please consider donating to any of the programs listed below.
We continue to keep Nepal in our thoughts.
· Red Cross
· International Medical Corps
· UNICEF
· Doctors Without Borders
· UN World Food Programme
· Save the Children
· OxFam
· CARE
· Catholic Relief Services
· Mercy Corps
· Nepal Ambulance Service
Monday, April 27, 2015 – 7:00 p.m. PDT
A message from Dr. Michele Barry, Senior Associate Dean of Global Health and Director of the Center for Innovation in Global Health
We are deeply saddened by the large magnitude earthquake that occurred over the weekend in Nepal. We realize there are many people in the Stanford community with relatives, colleagues and friends on the ground and we share worries and hopes.
All Stanford University students and faculty members in Nepal prior to the earthquake are safe and have departed the country, and several Stanford activities have been mobilized for emergency response.
We are working closely with our emergency medicine colleagues who have joined with the International Medical Committee to help with relief efforts and assess needs on the ground.
The Stanford Geospatial Center, in partnership with Humanitarian Open Street Map, is leading a crowd-sourced mapping effort to help facilitate coordination and information sharing particularly around sanitation and road access concerns based on the US Military’s ground level assessment today.
The disruption of water and sanitation increases risk of a potential large-scale cholera outbreak, particularly as cholera is more common during the Spring season. Stanford cholera experts are exploring vaccine needs and assessing stockpiles.
Recognizing the critical importance of a coordinated global response relief effort, we are in close communication with colleagues in Nepal, as well as US and international aid organizations to inform next steps.
If you wish to donate to support the Nepal disaster response, following are a few organizations to consider:
· Red Cross
· International Medical Corps
· UNICEF
· Doctors Without Borders
· UN World Food Programme
· Save the Children
· OxFam
· CARE
· Catholic Relief Services
· Mercy Corps
We will continue to share updates related to Stanford relief efforts in the coming days and weeks.
Updated April 28, 2015
Stanford Relief Efforts
Members of the Stanford community – from students to doctors and mapping experts – are organizing a range of efforts to help with rescue and recovery in Nepal.
UPDATES FROM THE FIELD
Following the April 25 earthquake, Paul Auerbach, MD, a Stanford professor and chief of emergency medicine, joined with an International Medical Corps team to assist the earthquake relief efforts in Kathmandu and surrounding region. Auerbach, who works with the Stanford Emergency Medicine Program for Emergency Response (SEMPER), shared several first-hand accounts from his time on the ground, which are chronicled on Stanford Medicine's Scope blog.
MAPPING AND BIOSURVEILLANCE
The Stanford Geospatial Center in the Branner Earth Sciences Library is leading a crowd-sourcing mapping effort to help facilitate coordination and information sharing particularly around sanitation and road access concerns. Anyone with a laptop can volunteer. Learn more about Stanford's mapping activities and how you can get inovlved here.
With post-earthquake conditions increasing the risk for a potential large-scale cholera outbreak, Stanford pediatrician and cholera expert, Eric Jorge Nelson, MD, PhD, is working on a smartphone app for use in places at high-risk for the disease. Nelson and colleauges will start testing the app in hospitals in Bangladesh later this year, and are seeking emergency support to implement the platform in Nepal. Read more about the project here.
Reminder to Stanford Personnel
Anyone traveling overseas is encouraged to register their travel with the Office of International Affairs.