Table 1. Activities included in the national alert-response strategy to control cholera in Haiti and core methodology of case-area targeted response interventions.

Activities included in the national alert-response strategy to control cholera in Haiti		Actors
Improve coordination
	of activities implemented by national, international, governmental and non-governmental partners involved in cholera control	MOH, DINEPA, UNICEF, PAHO, NGOs
Improve cholera surveillance
	in the community and in cholera treatment institutions monitoring of outbreaks via an alert detection system at the central level	MOH, UNICEF, PAHO, NGOs
Case-area targeted response interventions
Triggers	Every suspected case reported in a treatment center Rumors of cholera outbreaks
Deadline	Max. 48 hours after case admission to a treatment center
ore activities	Surveillance: verification of data in register books; identification of affected sites and neighborhoods Field investigations: extent of outbreak, outbreak origin, aggravating factors, contacts and suspected cases Visits to affected families and neighbors (minimum five households depending on the local geography) a Decontamination by chlorine spraying of latrines and other potentially contaminated surfaces a Education sessions about cholera transmission modes and methods of prevention and initial care a Distribution of one cholera kit per household: five soaps, five sachets of oral rehydration salts, and approximately 115 chlorine tablets (80 or 150 Aquatabs 33 mg in urban settings in rural areas, respectively) a Establishment of manual bucket chlorination at drinking water sources during one or more weeks when possible a Repair and extra-chlorination of water supply systems when possible a	Response teams of WaSH NGO b (mainly contracted by UNICEF), MOH Rapid response teams (EMIRAs)
Additional medical activities	Primary care of community cases Chemoprophylaxis of close contacts with one dose of doxycycline (300 mg) for non-pregnant adults only Nursing support to cholera treatment institutions	EMIRAs Medical NGOs b
Cholera prevention
	in the most vulnerable areas Mass education sessions, communication for development (C4D) Rehabilitation or installation of water supply infrastructures Oral cholera vaccine campaigns	MOH, DINEPA UNICEF, PAHO NGOs

^a activities analyzed in the study

^b see S1 Table for a list of NGOs

DINEPA, National Directorate for Water and Sanitation; EMIRA, MOH departmental rapid response mobile teams; MOH, Ministry of Health (Ministère de la Santé Publique et de la Population); NGO, non-governmental organization; PAHO, Pan American Health Organization; UNICEF, United Nations Children's Fund; WaSH, water sanitation and hygiene promotion