What can be done to reduce the impact of such disasters? What are the lessons learned?
In the health sector, one of the most important lessons we have learnedover and over againis the importance of hospitals in the aftermath of a disaster. All too often hospitals become victims of disasters themselves and are unable to provide their services precisely when they are most needed. This is exactly what has happened in Haiti. But it is not inevitable. We know hospitals can be built to withstand the impact of disasters and can be planned and equipped to remain functional after disasters. The additional cost of building hospitals to be disaster-safe is marginal, particularly in comparison to the cost of a failed hospital. Moreover, it is much less expensive to include earthquake safety measures at the design and construction stage than to retrofit a facility that has been damaged and is unable to function.
