Puerto Rico

Health Snapshot

According to the 2017 United States Census Bureau, 30 percent of Puerto Rico’s population at the time was over 55 years of age, and 24 percent were over 60 years old. Families are having fewer children, and many young people are leaving the island. And after Hurricane Maria, the Census Bureau estimated 130,000 more left.  While some people have returned, that still leaves a population estimated to be about 2.8 million with a median age of 44 years and presenting serious challenges to the health system.

The health issues that accompany an aging population intensified following the hurricane. Chronic disease such as diabetes and hypertension are common among an older population. The fragility of an infrastructure that could not withstand hurricanes and earthquakes meant that the collapse of power grid, water and sanitation only added to the health threats of water and mosquito borne diseases.  When many health facilities could no longer provide services, an already vulnerable population confronted an unprecedented public health crisis.  Americares establishment of an office and an in- country was in response to the magnitude of that crisis.

Earthquakes

In January 2020 a series of earthquakes in the Southwestern part of Puerto Rico added fresh trauma for the people of the beleaguered island. In the most destructive of the shocks, a 6.4 quake struck off the coast on January 7. Hundreds of aftershocks continued with the most severe at 6.0. One death and some injuries were reported. The earthquake was the strongest recorded in Puerto Rico since 1918.  As the fragile power grid was shut down again, many structures that were not built to withstand earthquakes collapsed or were damaged.  People feared returning to their homes and further loss of basic services as rebuilding from the hurricane still faced challenges and limited resources.  Americares deployed a team of mental health professionals and provided medicines and supplies to local partners.

Mental Health

In addition to the general trauma from the disasters, the World Health Organization reports that more than 20 percent of adults aged 60 and over suffer from a mental or neurological disorder—most commonly, dementia, depression and anxiety disorders. In the last two years, 51 percent of the suicides on Puerto Rico were among elderly people. This trend is particularly alarming in an aging population. The training of health workers to identify people at risk from trauma and other mental and emotional threats is a key to building capacity to treat this growing health crisis. The training also provides health workers with means to protect their own emotional wellbeing in times of extreme stress.