WHO kicks off regional meeting on disaster-borne health problems

BANGKOK, June 6 (TNA) - The World Health Organization (WHO), Southeast Asian Office, organized a meeting in Bangkok Wednesday, aimed to mainly prepare countries in the region for disaster-borne health problems with a guidance on disaster management. Dr. Samlee Plianbangchang, Director of the Geneva-based WHO's Southeast Asian Office, inaugurated the regional meeting, in which representatives from 11 countries participated, including Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia, Timor Leste, North Korea, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Maldives. At the meeting, the participants were learning on how to analyze and assess disaster threats in their respective countries, namely floods, earthquakes or tsunami, and how to deal with them and disaster-borne health problems subsequently, namely any epidemic and possible casualties, through effective planning, covering hygienic guidance and elimination of disease carriers' sources. The participants were also learning on how to prevent from and to deal with non-communicable diseases and communicable diseases threatening public health in their countries, including diabetes, high blood pressure and dengue fever, caused partly by climate change or the global warming problem. (TNA)