Geographic Information System as a health improvement tool: a resettlement camp in Mozambique

Abstract

Cyclone Idai have devastated and displaced an estimated 1.85 million individuals across Mozambique. Around 90,000 cyclone survivors have been relocated to 66 resettlement camps. Doctors of the World Portuguese Delegation team is supporting the Sanitary Post of a resettlement camp, located in a remote rural area with limited resources. The first intervention was to build an epidemiological surveillance system in order to prevent and control communicable and non-communicable diseases and to improve access to health care.The health status in the resettlement camp using conventional and geographic information system techniques were attempted as a community-based census-type cross-sectional study. Location of tents, water holes and latrines were mapped.There were 2,170 people living in the 402 households interviewed. The reported age range of population was 1 day to 99 years, with a mean 19.3 years and a median of 15 years. Among residents, 4% (n = 90) reported a non-communicable disease: hypertension (75.5%), respiratory disease (22.2%), and a range of conditions (2.3%). The prevalence of mental and physical disabilities was 1.8% (n = 39). Regarding individual behavioral risk factors, 6.7% and 5.6% of the residents over 15 years, were currently using tobacco and alcohol, respectively. The distance from any household to the nearest waterpoint is less than 500 meters and almost all households (98.5%) distance more than 50 meters from the nearest toilet, as the standard recommended. The average number of people in the camp are in the standard recommended of 20 people per toilet facility with a ratio 15.8 person per latrine.Geographic information system technology was helpful for the improvement of strategies on surveillance, prevention and control regarding communicable and non-communicable diseases, in the resettlement camp. Also made it possible to set up a home health care system, promoting access to health care for the disabled residents.