Comprehensive welfare of children who were exposed to the earthquake of April 16th 2016 in Ecuador.

Abstract

The objective of this study is to determine the state of the integral well-being of children who were exposed to the earthquake on April 16th 2016 in Manta, Ecuador. Subject of studies were 23 children below the age of 5 years, with signs of PTSD as a consequence of the earthquake, who were sheltered in a rescue center in the city of Manta during a period of 9 months in which they were relocated to different houses. From a qualitative and quantitative perspective, a naturalistic observation and the Chilean Scale for Child Welfare in Emergency Situations were applied; to measure the following categories: food, health, day care or access to pre-school education, psychosocial situation, care and housing. It was determined that 96.22% of the minors lost their homes or suffered severe damages in their houses. Allergies were observed in 21.74% of the children, as well as stomach alterations and tachycardia; 39.13% of them did not have access to school or attended partially for 3 months after the seismic event. In addition, 21.74% showed signs of alertness, fears and sleep disturbances; 8.70% of them report a state of risk with permanent frights; and 4.35% received intensive psychological treatment. Finally, it was observed that 34.78% of the children were not able to access adequate sanitation. Overall, the strongest impact was found in the psychosocial domain, care and housing figures. Those results reaffirm the importance of comprehensive family monitoring in post-disaster periods.