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pece_annotation_1474220787

Sara.Till

While there was criticism of the policy (see the Washington Post's rebuttal), the policy appeared to be well received until implementation of quarantine for returning health care workers. This, and the backlash, caused the policy to be revised and invited confusion about guidelines. Leaders may have lost political points by staying firm with their guidelines, but chose to revoke their initial decisions-- leading to confusion and worry in the general population. 

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Sara.Till

1) early on the article, Dr. Good discuses how individuals would use the word "fainting" to described their tonic-clonic seizure episodes. This was quite divergent from the word "epilepsy" in Turkish, thus allowing the patient to distance themselves from the well-stigmatized diagnosis of epilepsy. It also served as a point of reference for what linguistic nuances could be expected during the course of the interview, as these can play a great deal into the narrative.

2) Dr. Good also discusses the work of Dr. Evelyn Early, who interviewed members of the Turkish female population. His description of Dr. Early's work states these narratives “allow the women she studied to develop an interpretation of the illness in relation to a local explanatory logic and the biographic context of the illness, to negotiate right action in the face of uncertainty, and to justify actions taken, thus embedding the illness and therapeutic efforts within local moral norms".

3) Dr. Good includes the story of Zeki Bey, an individual with generalized seizures for 15 years at the time of interaction. Dr. Good describes his narrative of his illness as being "[told with] immediacy, drama, and poignancy... His illness had a powerful and meaningful beginning, which gave shape and coherence to the larger narrative."

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maryclare.crochiere

The article discusses the "compassion protocols" of France, the laws that allow illegal immigrants to stay in the country and get treated for diseases. They will not be deported and if they are incurable, then their housing costs will be paid for. It brings up politics that are very different from that in America, as far as what people are entitiled to. To be allowed to stay, one must apply to the government and wait to be accepted or denied. In cases of doubt, the individual was supposed to be accepted.

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Sara.Till

Preston's article mentions the EPA still had not formulated and enacted a plan for cleanup-- it should be noted the year of publication was 2006. She claims "After an expert panel failed last year to settle on a method for organizing an E.P.A. cleanup, the agency said it would proceed anyway with limited testing and cleaning". Moreover, in the 10 years since publication, several studies have indicated increased public health risks and chronic illness prevalence in populations near the disaster zone. It seems the approach of sit-and-wait did nothing but exacerbate the issue, leading me to believe this will serve as a symbol in any future pollutant-laden disasters.

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Sara.Till

Emergency response itself is not particularly addressed; the article, instead, focuses on the humanitarian efforts that typically spawn from multi-week and month long conflicts. These are not necessarily the first-line individuals, but rather the workers (such as MSF) which come in to provide aid in the middle, late, or final stages of a conflict. The report delves into the responsibilities and hurdles of dealing with sexual violence in humanitarian efforts, which includes both emergent and non-emergent care.  

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maryclare.crochiere

The information in this study can be used to offer help to couples after disasters, as it shows that counseling may be needed to help aleviate some of the issues at hand. While counseling may not be readily available with all of the other disaster relief that is going on, it should be reconized as something that may be necessary to help the recovery process and ensure greater safety.

pece_annotation_1480889790

Sara.Till

This article examines the gaps in research concerning health care workers in "complex security environments". These work areas contain some sort of conflict, poverty or environmental issues, particularly those that are humanitarian or crisis settings, and are characterized by civil unrest. This, in turn, leads to an involvement of aid personnel-- this report primarily focuses on violence towards health care workers within these settings and the lack of information on this issue. It pays particular attention to discrepancies between peer-reviewed, academic research and general media commentary or articles.  

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maryclare.crochiere

Emergency response is discussed in the following quote:

"One such intervention, psychological debriefing or critical incident stress debriefing, was developed in the 1980s for emergency responders and has been used with other victims of trauma (46). The technique is applied within 48 h of the traumatic event, during which victims are asked to describe the event and their emotional responses to it in detail. They are also given suggestions of methods to relieve stress (12). Intervention studies, however, have found that this method does not prevent psychopathology and, by strengthening memories of the traumatic event, may impair the natural recovery process and even worsen symptoms (44). Therefore, it is no longer recommended in the immediate aftermath of traumatic event exposure (12, 49)."

This quote shows that the psychological needs of first responders are also considered, not just those of the people who were victims. It shows a weakness in the abilities to heal people afterwards, as this method is no longer recommended. Other methods are being pursued, as the first responders of the world need support and healing too.