What were the stages of MSFs response to the South Asia tsunami?
All five operational sections of MSF were mobilized to carry out several exploratory missions. Within 24 to 48 hours, we were on the ground in several countries in the region. From our assessment, we quickly found out that Sri Lanka and Indonesia were the most severely affected countries, so that is where we concentrated our activities. (My section of MSF) intervened on the east coast of Sri Lanka and in the province of Aceh, in the north of Sumatra. Our activities unfolded in three phases as we assessed the situation on the ground. The first phase – the medical emergency phase – was the shortest. It is generally known that natural disasters cause more immediate deaths than people with wounds and do not usually result in a widespread disruption of the health system, as is the case in situations like war. In Sri Lanka as in Indonesia, it was the local health personnel, not the international aid organisations, that played a decisive role in the survival of the most severely wounded peopl
