Search

I am interested in seeing how social ties and networks have been used to cope with (un)natural disasters. My research focus on places under disasters conditions such as Puerto Rico after hurricane Maria, in which social ties have made the difference between life and death. Furthermore, “natural” disaster has been used to approved austerity measures and unjust policies to impoverished communities like in New Orleans after Katrina. These policies were not new, as they are rooted in structures of power to preserve the status quo. Yet, people have resisted, “through a network of branches, cultures, and geographies” that has stimulated a reflective process of looking within for solutions rather than outside. As often this outside solutions are not only detached from community’s reality but can perpetuate social injustices and inequalities.

McKittrick, K., & Woods, C. A. (Eds.). (2007). Black geographies and the politics of place. South End Press.

Bullard, R. D., & Wright, B. (Eds.). (2009). Race, place, and environmental justice after Hurricane Katrina: Struggles to reclaim, rebuild, and revitalize New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Westview Press.

Under OSHA Law, the employers must ensure their workers are in a safe workplace that does not contain any serious hazards according to the OSHA safety and health standards.

With the employers’ rights and responsibilities, OSHA has provided a list of methods to maximize the safe conditions within the workplace. For example, they have provided free Law Poster relevant to OSH Act for download and posting.

“Notify OSHA within 8 hours of a workplace fatality or within 24 hours of any work-related inpatient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye (1-800-321-OSHA [6742]).”

The central argument of the film is about the choice that needs to made upon with the emergency responders in a complex situation such as the lack of medical service within the country. The choices include which patient gets helped and which one are not with the lack of material supplies and the medical technology available. Or making choices if MSF member continues to stay in such condition to assist the locals getting medical treatment.

1. Patients: to get access with digital and gamified mental health assessments to diagnose themselves and gain self-awareness. After assessment, the patient might want get to a talk with the health professionals to have an ideal solution to the problem. Even by not getting frequent contacts with health professionals, the patients still can track their own health status with the system.
2. Providers: will receive patients’ data and recorded into a dashboard data to view the profiles more efficiently. The dashboard function also allows the track on the history and current progress. Relevant assessment also can be send out to the patients regularly in order to assist both provider and patients to understand the situation more clearly.
3. Organizations: organizations might include from a range of primary care center to hospital emergency room, with the data obtained from the patient, coordinated care can be provided. It is also a great tool to analysis the patients and form a study.

The vulnerable populations have addressed in this policy are the populations affected by the environmental contamination. “While the actor-survivors were dying a slow, painful, convulsive death… The contaminated water was collected but the “victims” died.”