The main focus of the article is mental health issues resulting in the aftermath of a major disaster. Mental health is rarely discussed in these types of environments but persists long after the dust has settled and the houses rebuilt. This article seeks to explore the current state of mental health care in disaster environments.
Schmid’s main argument is that in order to create an effective international nuclear emergency response team one must take the opinions of the “lay community” not only the opinions of the scientific elites. This increase in diversified opinions will allow for not only a better prevention method, but for more of a better response to disaster.
Since this affects insurance, it may affect clinicians and paid EMS. If an individuals knows that they need attention but cannot afford to go and seek the appropriate treatment may affect the overall public health.
Paul E. Farmer is a Harvard research professor and physician and focuses on global health. I was unable to find anything on Bruce Nizeye besides that he was a student at Harvard. Sara Stulac is a Physician at Bigham Womens Hospital with a focus on HIV studies. Salmaan Keshavjee is affiliatted with Harvard Medical School and has written many papers.
How did it happen (complete failure of cooling and reactors exploding)?
Although the earthquakes killed workers and wreaked havoc on the region, Japans’ nuclear plants were not compromised by the quakes. It was only the tsunami that caused Fukushima Daiichi 1, 2, & 3’s power and backup power to fail, allowing the meltdown to take place. (world-nuclearworld-nuclear.org)
Why was radioactive water released (purposely) into the ocean as stated in the article?
I found that although radioactive water was never “purposely” released into the ocean, it was known that it would likely end up there due to the failed ocean barrier wall. The water came from the necessity of cooling the overheated plants to prevent further meltdown and further contamination. The good news is that by 2012 the water within the Fukushima area was considered non-toxic to humans and aquatic species that live there. However, less is known about the effects on the ocean floor, where the radioactive matter is collecting in the sediment. (cnn.com)
What (if anything) has been done to further an international response team/plan for nuclear emergencies?
While my research turned up little results for international response development, countries have been developing their own response teams. China will have a national nuclear response team by the end of 2018 which will be made up of over 300 individuals and will meet the requirements for an international response team. This makes sense since China has more nuclear power plants than any other country in the world and expects to double its nuclear output over the next few decades. (firedirect.net)
Doctor Adriana Petryna holds a Ph.D in Anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley. She holds an M.A. in Anthropology as well as a B.S. in Architecture from the University of Michigan.
“…I have investigated the cultural and political dimensions of science and medicine in eastern Europe and in the United States (with a focus on the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and on clinical research and pharmaceutical globalization). My concerns center on public and private forms of scientific knowledge production, as well as on the role of science and technology in public policy (particularly in contexts of crisis, inequality, and political transition). I probe the social nature of scientific knowledge, how populations are enrolled in scientific experimentation, and what becomes of citizenship and ethics in that process. The anthropological method involves charting the lives of individuals and institutions over time through interviews, participation-observation, and comparative analysis. It illuminates fine-grained realities that are often more nuanced than those described by policy makers or captured in controlled experiments. The anthropological scrutiny of large-scale political and medical change always entails attending to how ordinary people—often encountering bewildering and overburdened systems—cobble together resources to protect their health and citizenship.” – from the University of Pennsylvania bio.
As I stated in the previous annotiation, their membership is mostly physicians and other health care workers, but is open to anyone that provides a resource that helps them achieve their goals.
This article draws mainly from Partners In Health projects in Rwanda and Haiti, using them as case studies to support their argument.
It has been cited in reports of the top polluted areas of the world. (http://www.worstpolluted.org/projects_reports/display/44)
According to Google Scholar the report was cited by 7 other papers.
“The Hague Street inquest featured many experts, none with the authority to effect real change. The result was a blanket of blame that covered everyone”
"Blame, memorial, and reconstruction tend to outpace technical consensus."
"Investigators had no power to protest the decision. In fact, their initial request to inspect the steel had been lost in the confusion by city officials still pressed with the responsibility of looking for bodies."