Communication: A lifeline in Earthquake Medical Relief
Anyone who was in Bhuj, Kachchh (Gujarat, India) after the catastrophic earthquake of 26th Jan. 2001, would have noticed the anxious crowds -the survivors standing in long queues, desperately trying to get in touch with family and friends. Beyond food, water, medicine and shelter provided by relief agencies, survivors of natural disasters the world over have a basic need – to let loved ones know they are alive. There is this desperate need for communications between the displaced persons in affected areas and their families on the outside that need to be addressed urgently.
To address this urgent need, a small group of three volunteers, appealed Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, at Mumbai to lend one of their satellite telephones. After collecting one unit, they rushed to the site by whatever available mode of transport. Since, at Bhuj there were some agencies of Dept. of Telecom who had already set-up basic communication facility, the team decided to move to the remote rural areas where such a facility could be used very effectively. They were advised to rush to a hospital about 60 Kms. South of Bhuj.
This hospital is run by Shree Bidada Sarvodaya Trust, a charitable, non-profit organization (http://www.bidada.com). The trust is well known for the medical camp it organizes every January in village Bidada, Kutchh. At the January camp that had just concluded, patients from over 1200 villages were examined. The trust runs a permanent 50 bed hospital that provides eye, dental, orthopedic, gyanecology and other medical services year round.
After reaching the hospital, the group got into action and quickly set-up the communication facility -predominantly a telephone and a facsimile. Each trustee and concerned doctors had up to a minute or two to call a family member outside the village. If the relative called back, they were allowed to talk for up to ten minutes. Doctors were asked to pass on phone numbers for relatives of others, so that these relatives would call back, thus reducing the number of costly outgoing calls. Getting free phone time was a constant problem.
An essential satellite fax service was also established. A control room at Mumbai was already active to receive the fax calls and respond on emergency basis to provide additional contingent of doctors, nurses, para-medical staff, medicines, essential appliances, surgical materials and various others needs. In the couple of days they had processed large number of calls.
With a view to devote maximum time to actual medical emergency cases, personal telephone calls were restricted to a minute each only. This approach also ensured that the usage did not rack up hefty Satphone bills for usage – about $2 per minute per outgoing satellite call.
Helping the medicos at the hospital was about more than providing medicines and surgical tools. They could communicate with experts in Mumbai, organise and arrange augmentation and replacement of doctors, nurses and requisition critical support. The satphone communication became lifeline to the medical staff itself during these days.
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