Humanitarian Group Helps Treat 3,000 Patients in Mobile Clinics

ISLAMABAD (Aug. 3, 2010) – CARE International sent a convoy of eleven trucks to the Swat district of Pakistan today, bringing tents, shawls and other emergency supplies to families devastated by flooding there. The initial distribution­ will provide shelter for around 1,800 people affected by flash floods and landslides in the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. And it also includes mosquito nets, plastic floor mats, water purification tabs, hygiene kits and kitchen sets.

Over the next two days, CARE will send an additional 500 shelters and family supplies to the districts of Nowshera and Charsadda. CARE also is supporting health teams and mobile clinics in the wake of flooding that has taken hundreds of lives in Pakistan, washed away homes and roads and affected about a million people.

Working with partners, CARE is filling gaps in areas of health and the delivery and distribution of emergency items. Receding floodwaters, overcrowded shelters and poor access to safe drinking water and sanitation increase the risk of disease outbreak. “The current floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa underscore the necessity of investing in preparedness to reduce death and suffering in the event of a disaster” says Waleed Rauf, country director for CARE in Pakistan.

Hundreds of stranded people have been rescued from rising floodwaters by Army helicopters in a massive rescue effort. Damage assessments to determine relief priorities are still under way, with the worst-affected areas identified as parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the northern and southern parts of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), Balochistan, South Punjab and the northern areas of Pakistan-administrated Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. In those areas, up to 100,000 households are in need of assistance. “So far CARE has provided primary health services,” Rauf says. “More than 3,000 patients have been treated through mobile clinics and basic health care units. CARE is also providing health awareness through health and hygiene sessions in mobile camps.”

The impact farther south, in Sindh province, is not reported as critical yet. “But the situation is likely to change in the coming days, as the floodwaters move towards the south”, Rauf says. “August is traditionally the month of heaviest rains, meaning that much more rain is expected.”

CARE re-established operations in Pakistan in June 2005, after being out of the country for more than 25 years. CARE places special emphasis on gender issues and building the capacity of local grassroots organizations in Pakistan, working to improve education and livelihoods as well as maternal and childhood health. CARE also has responded to previous emergencies in Pakistan, including Cyclone Yemyin in 2007 and the South Asia earthquake of 2005.

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About CARE: Founded in 1945, CARE is one of the world’s largest humanitarian aid agencies. Working side by side with poor people in 72 countries, CARE helps empower communities to address the greatest threats to their survival. Women are at the heart of CARE’s efforts to improve health, education and economic development because experience shows that a woman’s achievements yield dramatic benefits for her entire family. CARE is also committed to providing lifesaving assistance during times of crisis and rebuilding safer, stronger communities afterward.