Haiti Case Study - The Department of Global Health and Social ...

FOREWORD
THE HAITI CASE STUDY
27 June 2012
A joint study team from NATO's Joint Analysis and Lessons Learned Centre, Harvard
Medical School, and Harvard Humanitarian Initiative is engaged in an ongoing study project
to infer elements of a strategic framework for health system strengthening in crisis-affected
fragile states. The joint study team has adopted a multi-case study approach, and it is with
great pleasure that we release this working paper documenting the findings from the subject
of the first case study: Haiti after the January 2010 earthquake.
The paper addresses four key themes: the impact of the earthquake and the subsequent
cholera epidemic on Haiti's health system; security community participation in health system
recovery and reconstruction; coordination mechanisms that facilitated or directed the security
community's involvement; and the information generating and sharing mechanisms that
allowed the security community to best participate in health system strengthening.
Investigations into these four themes were focussed through the use of the three narratives
given in the Annexes to this paper.
The outcome of this first case study is a number of key takeaways and food for thought
which will inform the research being undertaken by the joint project team as it carries out the
subsequent case studies.
We trust that this working paper is informative and we look forward to releasing the papers
on the future case studies and the final report detailing the overall project findings and
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Vanessa Bradford Kerry, MD MSc
Director of Global Public Policy and
Social Change,
Department of Global Health and Social
Medicine, Harvard Medical School