I’m Traveling to India with the International Reporting Project
By Lindsey Mastis | February 04, 2013 | India
I’m very excited to be traveling to India mid-February with the International Reporting Project*, where I’ll be one of 10 journalists participating in a New Media Trip to report on issues dealing with child survival. I’ll be traveling to slums, hospitals, and rural areas to meet the children and mothers trying to survive. And I’ll profile members of organizations trying to help. My goal is to show the problems and obstacles that have led to this epidemic, and identify programs and ideas that could lead to the solutions India needs to help it’s most vulnerable citizens survive childhood.
What is the problem?
More than six million children under the age of five died in 2011. Some died of preventable diseases. Others developed illnesses caused by unsanitary living conditions. Those that survive childhood often bear the signs of a difficult start. Many people in India are stunted. Some are blind.
It starts with water, one of the most basic necessities of life. There is a shortage of water in India, and people living in the slums along the massive pipelines often puncture holes into the structure to siphon off water for their families. To make matters worse, much of India’s water supply is polluted or carries contaminants that cause cholera and typhoid fever. Standing water can attract mosquitoes infected with dengue fever or malaria. Sadly, many children get diarrhea from drinking the water, become quickly dehydrated and die.
Food, another basic necessity of life, accounts for many other health problems in young children. According to India’s own Ministry of Health, 40 percent of children are malnourished. Children and their parents are often unaware of basic nutrition needed to keep children healthy. Because of this, 48 percent of children are stunted. Malnutrition can also affect brain development, and those with Vitamin A Deficiencies can become blind.
Many children die from preventable diseases. There are vaccines for hepatitis B, diphtheria, and measles. But children often don’t receive vaccinations. While India has had success nearly irradiating Polio, the measles are still quite common. In 2011, three percent of children under age five died from measles.
HIV/AIDS is also big problem in India. 2.4 million people are HIV positive. UNICEF estimates that 220,000 children are HIV positive, and tuberculosis is often the disease that takes their lives.
What is the solution?
I don’t know the answers. I’m hoping to shine a spotlight on those that do. Perhaps it will make a difference. Here’s what I’ve learned so far:
These issues are well-known in many circles. UNICEF and the World Health Organization are actively seeking to reduce the number of child deaths in India with vaccination programs, or by handing out bed nets. There are smaller organizations working in slums, trying to education families on nutrition.
India has nearly eradicated Polio (the last case was in 2011), and must now focus on keeping it’s track record. The virus is still prominent in neighboring Pakistan, and that country’s vaccination program was halted after nine health workers were murdered. India must make sure the disease doesn’t re-enter the country.
While medical care is often too expensive for most Indian families, India’s government is considering purchasing private hospitals and converting them into public facilities.
There needs to be a call to action. The world is watching; but perhaps not close enough?
*The International Reporting Project (IRP), a non-profit journalism organization, is based at the Johns Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies. Major funding for the New Media Trip to India comes from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This independent fellowship program maintains editorial independence and the final content is at the sole discretion of IRP.
Lindsey Mastis is traveling to India in 2013 with the International Reporting Project. This post originally appeared on Lindsey's blog.
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