title: Measuring humanitarian emergencies.
abstract: The ability to monitor assistance, define humanitarian needs, and approach equity in the distribution of assistance has lagged behind the world's growing commitment to responding to humanitarian emergencies. This article highlights relevant data sources to elucidate elements of an operational definition of humanitarian need. New and refined measures are proposed to assist in assessing the level of need among affected populations. An original measure that combines data on conflict and disasters to summarize the cumulative magnitude of 4 types of humanitarian threats is presented.
authors.affiliation: Columbia University School of Nursing, 617 W 168th St, Room 262, New York, NY, USA. rmg3@columbia.edu
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Garfield
mesh_terms: D000533:Altruism; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D003625:Data Collection; D019992:Databases as Topic; D003906:Developing Countries; D004190:Disasters; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006801:Humans; D009014:Morals; D012036:Refugees