Midyear Thoughts on Haiti’s Covid 19--July 2020

 

Grandma in Cite Soleil–July 1, 2016 (Photo by John Carroll)

The second half of 2020 begins today. It has been quite a year so far and is not showing any signs of becoming less eventful in the second half. 

Haiti’s public health department, MSPP, reports that there are approximately 6,000 confirmed cases of Covid 19 and approximately 100 deaths. But these “official figures” are just that….and the real burden of Covid 19 in Haiti is much higher. 

During the last three months, how many Haitians have stayed at home when they were sick because they are afraid to go to the clinic or the hospital for one reason or another? Many Haitians have had the “little fever” but they deny it is Covid 19. They do not want to be labeled as suffering from the virus because of the associated stigma.

Haitian President Jovenel Moise announced on Monday the reactivation of the country’s economy (the little that it has) and the reopening of its borders. Some Haitian officials think that the surge of coronavirus is over. But I am not sure how they arrive at this conclusion with very little testing and poor community contact tracing. 

The international airports in Port-au-Prince and Cap Haitien, as well as the four official border crossings with the Dominican Republic, were reopened yesterday. 

It is interesting that the airport in Port-au-Prince is now open to flights from the coronavirus laden United States.  On June 26, European Union (EU) officials decided that Americans will be banned from entering the EU as borders reopen today. Other countries not being allowed in Europe include Russia and Brazil. 

I wonder if it was important that during the last three months Haiti attempted to flatten the curve of coronavirus infections? Flattening the curve is meant to allow hospitals and their staff to function effectively during high numbers of Covid 19 patients.  How is this concept important for 11 million poor Haitians when there are very few hospitals that function at all? 

And scientists who are expert pandemic modelers tell us that short durations of social distancing slightly diminish the peak surge of Covid 19, but eventually results in high overall infection rates. Experts are in agreement that Latin America will reach herd immunity several months from now due to poor mitigation efforts. So, if we believe this, Haitians may have collective immunity to the virus before their North American friends. (Even THIS is nuanced and disputed because transient immunity may be all that happens after infection with this coronavirus. It’s a long story….) 

What can be said for certain, is that Covid 19 in Haiti (and everwhere) has many destructive INDIRECT effects.

This website reported:

“The health indicators (in Haiti) are alarming: Compared to the same period last year, there is a 332% increase in the number of confirmed cases of malaria; Between May 2019 and May 2020, there was a 74% decrease in hospital deliveries and 67% reduction in prenatal consultations; In April 2020, half as many children were vaccinated as in April 2019.”

So time marches on. Most sick Haitians stay home and drink their tea and care for each other as they always have.   

 

John A. Carroll, MD

www.haitianhearts.org