Two weeks ago, I went to Santiago to purchase supplies for our local doctors’ relief efforts in Haiti. After stopping by the warehouse where they are storing donated food, shelter materials, and medicines to help inventory a recent batch of medication donations, I met with Olivier to learn more about the logistical coordination he has been managing from this side of the border.  It struck me how quickly he and the doctors have been able to organize their efforts, and to do so in a very comprehensive, efficient, effective way.

We also discussed many of the challenges and opportunities the team has encountered in the several weeks since the earthquake.  For example, many aid efforts being led by international volunteers have been unable to penetrate the poorer areas in and around Port-au-Prince due to language barriers and safety concerns.  Similarly, without being able to walk around the tent camps, they have often been unable to reach the sickest and most injured people who cannot make their way to the makeshift clinics and distribution centers.  The benefit of a team made up entirely of Haitian doctors in such a situation is clear.  In addition to finding and treating patients, and bringing them to hospitals if necessary, they have been working with the leaders of each tent camp to get census information: how many people are in each camp, how many have had amputations, how many children are without parents, etc.  While they do travel with bodyguards to ensure safety on their way into Haiti, they have so far been received extremely well.

Thanks to donations from friends and family through my PayPal account, we were able to purchase RD$40,000, approximately US$1,110, worth of medical and surgical supplies:

• 10 boxes of gauze
• 300 saline IV drips
• 10 adult and 10 pediatric oxigen cannulae
• 200 butterfly needles of varying sizes
• 20 adult and 20 pediatric nebulizer masks
• 120 Foley catheters of varying sizes
• 50 thermometers
• 30 urine collection bags
• 3 packs of disposable surgical gowns
• 100 pairs of sterile gloves
• 1 glucometer with four boxes of test strips
• 30 packs of underpads for hospital beds
• 100 Jelco IV catheters
• 200 syringes of varying sizes

These were brought to Haiti the next day with that week’s medical team, which was then partnering with a hospital and orphanage run by the Salesian sisters in Carrefour.  The Hopital de la Communaute Haitienne seems to have received an influx of international support, so the team was able to be flexible and adapt to where the need was greatest. These doctors are all extremely dedicated and passionate about using their skills as medical professionals in the wake of this tragedy, and I’m so grateful to have been able to channel the generosity of people from home to support their efforts.  I later received a report from Dr. Dorsainvil, the family physician who is leading the medical team of Mano Amiga Haiti, with more information about the work they have been able to accomplish over the past few weeks.  I’ve written a summary below, and you can click on the link to read the full report (in Spanish).

Our plans

In addition to supporting the work of this amazing group of doctors, Angi and I have decided to join a smaller team that will be going to Haiti at the end of April.  We will be partnering with the Fondation Pour Les Enfants d’Haiti, a multi-service organization located in Port-au-Prince that runs a hospital, orphanage, school, and home for children with special needs.   She and I will be an extra set of arms and legs for the medical efforts and whatever else is needed, and we will also be exploring ways that we as individuals or as an organization can lend our support to the on-going relief.  Because the organization is located in a secure compound, we will be able to serve and stay there safely as a group of Americans.  One of the reasons we are not joining the Mano Amiga Haiti team is that they have been staying in more open accommodations, and the unfortunate reality is that we do not want to be a liability to them as the only non-Haitians in the group.

Because of this new commitment, we will now be allocating donations received between Mano Amiga Haiti and Fondation Pour Les Enfants d’Haiti.  Angi and I will be putting some of our own resources toward the cost of food and transportation, but any donations that could support our personal costs would be appreciated.  If you would like to specify how you would prefer your donation to be used, please feel free to write “Mano Amiga Haiti,” “Fondation Pour Les Enfants d’Haiti,” or “Operating Expenses” in the note section on PayPal.  Again, you can donate by following these steps:

1. Visit www.paypal.com
2. Click on “Send Money.” Since my PayPal account is registered in the US, you do not need to select the international option.
3. Enter my email address – lmcnulty08@gmail.com – your own email address, and the amount of money you wish to donate.  Please note that using your PayPal credit or a bank account will incur fewer fees than will using a credit card.
4. Click on the “Personal” tab, and select the category as “Other.”

Any donation you can provide is deeply appreciated, and please feel free to get in touch with Angi or me if you have any questions or concerns.  Thank you so much for your support!

Gratefully,
Laura

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Mano Amiga Haiti – January 2010 Report

Between January 13th (the day after the earthquake) and January 31st, Mano Amiga Haiti sent four teams to Haiti with the participation of 87 volunteers — including 40 doctors, 8 nurses, 12 paramedics, 2 psychologists, and 22 health promoters.  In this time, they treated over 7,630 patients and distributed food and water to over 11,000 people.  Their work was focused in the neighborhoods of Petionville, Delmas 33, Carrefour, and Leogane.  In each of these, they organized a total of 11 committees to ensure the appropriate and effective delivery of food, water, and medical care, and to educate and organize residents to avoid epidemics.  They brought supplies and personnel support to the hospitals already functioning in these areas, and also ran mobile clinics to treat and refer patients that were not able to travel to the hospitals.

The team performed over 600 surgeries, set over 450 broken bones, and treated over 2,220 infected wounds.  They treated over 450 people for genito-urinary infections, 1230 for respiratory illnesses (such as pneumonia, bronchitis, and asthma), and 900 for diarrheal diseases.  They treated 22 malaria cases, and provided medication to over 400 people with hypertension and over 250 with diabetes.  They delivered 17 babies, and provided perinatal care to over 300 infants.  At this point, the greatest concern is for individual follow-up care, especially for post-surgical patients and newborn infants, and for broad spectrum public health measures to prevent epidemic disease. Mano Amiga Haiti will be continuing to confront these challenges in the weeks and months ahead.

After a short stint in the U.S., I’m back in the Dominican Republic to present our blog readers with this second photo montage. Click on each photo for descriptions.  We love your comments, please keep them coming…

Saludos, Angi

After sending out an email last week describing the efforts of several local doctors to bring medical relief to Haiti, many people responded with words of encouragement and generous donations of all sizes.  With nearly $1,000 in donations secured, I am moving forward with putting these funds to use.  Below is from an email I just sent out to friends and family to update everyone on our progress.

After talking further with Dr. Batch and Dr. Lambert, I got in touch with Dr. Jean “Frandy” Dorsainvil, a community medicine physician who is leading the team they are a part of.  Angi and I have been working closely with Dr. Frandy during our time here as well – he is the President of both AMHEUD and FONLOMBAY, two organizations we have been collaborating with on HHI’s Community Health Worker course.   Dr. Frandy has been in Haiti every other week since the earthquake happened, providing urgent care and assessing the changing on-the-ground situation.  As the team leader, he is working with a Santiago-based businessman named Olivier Flambert, who is lending warehouse space, logistical and coordination assistance, and fundraising support through what he’s termed Operation Helping-Hand-Haiti (Mano Amiga Haiti).  They have set up a website as well: www.helpinghandhaiti.org.

Separately, I also talked with two friends, Chelsea and Wilson, who have been in the border town of Jimani and in Haiti (respectively) helping with relief effort.  They both confirmed that Mano Amiga Haiti’s teams have been providing much-needed care in the suburbs and neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince where aid delivery has been lacking, such as Petionville and Carrefour.  They are rotating teams on a weekly basis, and about 40 physicians and residents are involved in the effort.

I spoke with Olivier today, who said he and Dr. Frandy will be meeting tomorrow to review the inventory of medications, supplies, and food that they have remaining.  They will then send me a list of what needs to be secured before the next team leaves for Haiti.  Given how fast the turn-around time is, I will be helping out by going to Santiago later this week to take care of the actual purchasing. Dr. Frandy and Olivier have been able to utilize their connections with Santiago-based laboratories and suppliers to purchase items at wholesale prices, and I will be doing the same.

I realized not everyone who is reading this blog is on my email list (oh the power of the internet), so I hope to use this as another platform for spreading the word about this team’s need for support.

My decision to advocate for and support this grassroots relief effort came from the realization that effectively helping Haiti would be much more complicated, and much less straightforward, than I thought at the beginning.  While I know and understand the recommendations are to support recognized relief organizations like the Red Cross, Partners In Health, Doctors Without Borders, and more, there is nothing stopping local doctors from going to help.  Quite frankly, there is more need than the actual relief organizations are currently able to meet, due to the lack of supportive infrastructure in place to deliver aid on the scale being demanded.  It also seems these recommendations are targeted to people wanting to help from the US — not people who are here on the island who can easily buy supplies to bring across the border. Finally, for people like Batch and Lambert, the drive to go and help is not only professional, but intensely personal – Batch lost seven family members in the earthquake.  After witnessing the situation here in the DR, and participating in numerous conversations and meetings where people are organizing to raise money and supplies, I felt compelled to do something more to support the efforts of those dedicated individuals I know and respect personally.

To join in supporting this team, I’ve set up a PayPal account where you can make a secure donation towards their relief efforts.  Please be aware that this donation is totally separate from Health Horizons International – the PayPal account is linked to allow withdrawals from my personal bank account.  This means that donations are not tax deductible, and that I will be personally managing the allocation of funds.  However, after consulting with the rest of the HHI Board of Directors, and given the extraordinary circumstances that the earthquake has created, I believe this is one more way in which we can help alleviate the enormous suffering being endured just across the border.

Please remember that I am by no means dissuading anyone from donating to major relief organizations, and in fact encourage everyone to continue so that broader scale and longer-term relief can be effectively delivered.  But, for those who feel moved to support more grassroots efforts, your generosity is deeply appreciated.

In order to donate:

1. Visit www.paypal.com
2. Click on “Send Money.” Since my PayPal account is registered in the US, you do not need to select the international option.
3. Enter my email address – lmcnulty08@gmail.com – your own email address, and the amount of money you wish to donate.  Please note that using your PayPal credit or a bank account will incur fewer fees than will using a credit card.
4. Click on the “Personal” tab, and select the category as “Other.”

If you do not have a PayPal account, you will be prompted to set one up.  This requires only your name, address, and credit card or bank account information.  It is a free account, and PayPal is a secure service.

I will be keeping meticulous records of donations received and the distribution of funds, which anyone is welcome to request.  I will also continue to send regular emails and to keep this blog updated.

While this team of doctors will eventually no longer need to be providing the emergency level of aid that they are currently, the need for social, public health, and economic justice will continue.  Thank you for continuing to stay informed, advocating for what you believe is right, and standing in solidarity with the people of Haiti.

~Laura