Canadian Red Cross

Published purpose

September 16, 2010 - Pakistan is experiencing its worst monsoon flooding in at least 80 years. Government estimates put the number of people affected by the floods at 21 million. Millions of people have been displaced and over 1.8 million houses have been either damaged or destroyed. Assessments to establish the degree to which affected populations are in need of immediate humanitarian assistance continue. CIDA is supporting the deployment and staffing of a joint Canadian/Norwegian Red Cross Basic Health Care (BHC) Unit to support the Red Cross Movement's Pakistan floods operation. The target location is in Sindh Province where in excess of 2.3 million people are affected. The BHC Unit is designed to be a mobile and flexible healthcare resource in the field and, in this case, consists of a central operational hub along with two mobile units deploying daily to reach affected communities. The BHC Unit provides immediate preventive, curative and community health care. The Unit can provide care for up to 30,000 people over the course of a 3-4 month deployment, can accommodate 20 temporary inpatients, and provides referral services to other secondary and tertiary health facilities.