One item evacuation centers can have more of

Now that the rainy season has begun and typhoons have become frequent visitors, perhaps it’s time for a quick check on what sort of donations evacuation centers need.

Canned food, water, clothing, and rubbing alcohol are all top-of-mind when donating to evacuation centers. But did you know that according to a World Health Organization Report published in 2009, skin disease was the 3rd top cause of morbidity in Philippine evacuation centers?

Exposure to elements and overcrowded living conditions can aggravate something as simple as dry skin.

As such, you know what might be a big help in evacuation centers to prevent deaths caused by dry skin? petroleum jelly.

While we know it as a quick remedy for chapped lips or cracked heels, petroleum jelly can actually be used to prevent bacteria from entering small cuts, soothe minor burns, neutralize itchiness, and prevent blisters.

In response to aid efforts in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiayan, Vaseline partnered up with Direct Relief and local partner IPIF in 2015 and created The Vaseline Healing Project, an effort to provide donations and healing missions, as well as to help people in emergency situations.

They saw that skin diseases came aplenty in these evacuation centers so they distributed products, among them the handy-dandy Vaseline petroleum jelly, and provided medical assistance to patients who had developed skin problems like dermatitis, impetigo, and fungal infections. 

Two years into the campaign, and The Vaseline Healing Project — now planted firmly in place in the public mind — has reached 2.4 million people across 41 countries including USA, Ecuador, South Africa, and India. — LA/KVD,  GMA News