Update on the International Society of Doctors

 

International Society of Doctors for the Environment, ISDE Latinoamérica
Regional Coordination: Asociación Argentina de Médicos por el Medio Ambiente,
AAMMA

 

Newsletter: August - September 2003

This newsletter in English is only informing on the activities, the original newsletter in Spanish can be found at the www.aamma.org
Contact us: aamma@ciudad.com.ar

 

Programmed activities:

City of Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, October 1st & 2nd, 2003: ISDE.AL and INCHES (represented by AAMMA at the national field) are co-organizing with the Argentinian Society of Pediatrics (SAP) and World Health Organization (WHO) the "First International Training Workshop on Children Environmental Health" and a Round Table on "Healthy Environment for Children" in the framework of the 33rd Congress of Pediatrics. These activities will bring together experts on CEH and pediatricians and other health professionals, nurses and health administrators of 7 countries of South America.
More information: www.aamma.org

City of Buenos Aires, Argentina, September 26th, 2003: AAMMA and HCWH organize the workshop "Toxic exposure in health care" and "Toxichemicals in medical devices and practices" in the framework of the activities of Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) campaign in Argentina. Mark Rossi, Senior Research Associate with Health Care Without Harm, expert on PVC plastic toxicity and the availability of PVC-free products in health care, who is specially invited by AAMMA, will participate on the workshop. The speakers (Dr. Mark Rossi, Ing. Jose Luis Alvarez and Dr. Maria Della Rodolfa) will pose on the identification of processes and products that can release toxic substances during health care activities, its health effects and alternative clean products in US, EU and for Latin America. The workshop is oriented to medical doctors, nurses, health administrators, medicine students, architectures and engineers of the health care industry and other health professionals.

Bangkok, United Kingdom of Thailand, November 1st to 7th, 2003: AAMMA will participate on the Fourth Session of the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety (IFCS) "Chemical Safety in a Vulnerable World" and is member of the Working Group on "Children and Chemical Safety". For this event, AAMMA cooperated on the elaboration of the IFCS Decision Document "Protecting Children from Harmful Chemical Exposures" and the Information Documents where it is presented the global current situation on children chemical exposure and the divergent issues of reference to be considered and treated by the National Delegates during IFCS. The documents are available at: www.ifcs.ch

Carried out activities:

City of Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 28th & 29th 2003: AAMMA´s experts team offered the course "Impacts on Health of Environmental Changes" in the framework of the Superior Course of Public Health (recognized by the National Ministry of Health and the Secretary of Health of the City of Buenos Aires Government). This Course was only for health professionals that have made the Basic Course of Health Administration and for those at directive boards. The thematic issues were: "State of the world, health effects of big environmental changes and risk communications ", "Toxichemical substances present in the environment" and "Children Environmental Health I and II”

City of Rosario, Santa Fe Province, Argentina, August 14th 2003: AAMMA´s educational team lectured on "Environmental toxichemicals and its health effects" at the Master on Occupational Health at the Medicine School of the National University of Rosario. AAMMA´s educational team handled on “Endocrine disruptors" and "Reversible and irreversible effects of toxichemicals on neurodevelopment”

City of Santa Fe, Santa Fe Province, Argentina, August 8th, 2003: AAMMA and Labor Federal Council (CFT) presided by the Secretary of Labor and Social Security of Santa Fe Province, and in the framework of activities planned by the National Council of Eradication of Child Labor (CONAETI) coorganized one day of work on “Child and Adolescent Labor: Worst forms of Child Labor: Towards a regional assessment”. The goal of this first meeting was to identify and assess the environmental situation of child labor in the region, regarding the Worst Forms of Child Labor defined by International Labor Organization. During the workshop, a final document with several proposals and strategies for child labor eradication was developed and it will be available soon at www.aamma.org.

Advocacy:

August 28th: AAMMA-ISDE.AL representatives interviewed Senator Luz Maria Zapag (President of the Environment Commission of the Argentinian Senate) in order to request the urgent ratification of the Stockholm Treaty on POPs Elimination in the framework of the important meeting organized by IFCS this year. It was also presented the IFCS Decision Document “Protecting Children from Harmful Chemical Exposures” prepared for the IV IFCS, Bangkok, November 2003. During the meeting Health Care

Without Harm Campaign, its goals and mission, were introduced to the Senator who showed interest on the topic. The project announced by the Secretary of Environment of the Argentinian Government on its webpage (“PCBs Neutralize Plant”) to be located in the province that the Senator represents (Neuquén) was also part of the conversation. AAMMA showed a clear opposition to the settlement of the treatment plant due to the method proposed and the risks that this would represent for our environment and health.

August 27th: AAMMA-ISDE.AL was invited by PAHO National Office to meet Dr. Luiz Galvao, head of Health and Environment Area of the Panamerican Health Organization, PAHO, during his visit to Buenos Aires. He was interested in the development of AAMMA-ISDE.AL activities on CEH in the region. It was also presented the latest news on the preparation and development of the First International Training on Children Environmental Health to be held on October in Argentina. The president of the Argentinian Society of Pediatrics, who was invited by AAMMA to participate in the meeting.

 

August 26th: AAMMA-ISDE.AL was invited as expert to meet the delegates of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. In this opportunity it was presented the technical impressions on health effects on children of the Mapuche community affected by the petrochemical industry activities in the Province of Neuquén. The community has to face health problems due to water and soil pollution generated by the petrochemical industry. AAMMA explained the environmental health effects due to the pollution and the potential risks for current and future generations.

AAMMA is Asociación Argentina de Médicos por el Medio Ambiente.
AAMMA participates in the International Society of Doctors for the Environment Directive Board, ISDE
Member of the International Network on Children´s Health Environment and Safety, INCHES
Member of the Directive Board and focal point for Argentina in the International Pop´s Elimination Network IPEN
Agrees with the Health Care Without Harm Program, HCWH
www.aamma.org
: jcproteg@satlink.com
*****************************