MISSION STATEMENT:

“We are committed to providing the people we serve with the best medical care possible while providing an environment that treats every patient with confidentiality, dignity and respect.”

ORGANIZATIONAL MISSION:

On January 12, 2010, an earthquake violently rocked the small island nation of Haiti, rapidly spreading unprecedented havoc and destruction across the country.  Hundred thousands of people died during the earthquake and many more died in the days and weeks that followed. Thousands more were trapped or left homeless, many suffering unimaginable traumatic injuries.  For weeks people around the globe watched the pictures of death, destruction and human suffering stream across their television screens.  We saw media footage of children wandering through the rubble, crying for parents they would never see again. We saw thousands of people who had lost absolutely everything, living in the streets and just trying to survive among the bodies of those who did not.

But we also watched and applauded the international humanitarian efforts that mounted, and lamented the lack of progress as the rescuers attempted to push forward to aid the Haitian people. But in the days and weeks ahead, we saw something else.  Not only did we witness the courage of a people who would not surrender to their misfortune, we also witnessed the resolve of the entire free world.  Rescue crews from many countries rushed in to offer their services.  Ordinary people around the globe dug deep into their pockets in order to donate funds for earthquake relief.  People everywhere wanted to do whatever they could to save the lives of others that they did not even know.

It is in this spirit that we want to initiate a program that will continue to care for and benefit the Haitian people for years and decades to come.  This initiative will bring to Haiti a mobile medical clinic, which will move about the region caring for the medical, psychological and dental needs of those in need.

Following my recent trip to Haiti, I have contemplated the fate of those thousands of Haitians who have been fortunate enough to receive treatment for the trauma they have experienced.  While some will receive follow-up treatment, I fear that many, if not most, will not.  Many of those will be the very young and the very old, who will be unable to come to whatever treatment facilities are available.  And of that group, I feel many may ultimately succumb due to infection and disease caused by that very lack of follow-up treatment.

Similar to the Ronald McDonald Care Mobile program which brings medical and dental care to underserved and underprivileged children in the United States, our unit will travel to those areas where the need exists.  Staffed by my volunteer team of medical professionals, we estimate that we will be able to provide treatment for 50 to 100 patients daily, as well as distribute the dressings and medications needed for them to successfully recover from their injuries.

SHORT TERM GOALS:

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere and is ranked 149th of 182 countries on the Humanitarian development index. The country is considered “economically vulnerable” by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). It is no stranger to natural disasters; in addition to earthquakes, it has been struck frequently by hurricanes, which have caused flooding and widespread damage. The most recent hurricanes to hit the island prior to the earthquake were tropical storm Fay and Hurricanes Gustav, Hanna and Ike, all in the summer of 2008, causing nearly 800 deaths. During this earthquake, amongst the widespread devastation and damage throughout Port-au-Prince and elsewhere, vital infrastructures necessary to respond to the disaster was severely damaged or destroyed. This included almost all the hospitals in the capital.

The quake affected the three Doctors without Borders’ medical facilities around Port-au-Prince, causing one to collapse completely. A hospital in  Pétionville, a wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince, also collapsed, as did the St. Michel District Hospital in the southern town of Jacmel, which was the largest referral hospital in south-east Haiti. The state university Hospital, named the general hospital was severely damaged and can no longer admit patients. It is the biggest and the most frequented hospital in the country. It is surnamed the hospital of the poor. During the emergency phase of the relief patients were taking care of under some tents put in place by the marines but when the reconstruction get started they will no longer be able to admit patients.

In the days and weeks following the earthquake, thousands of survivors were relocated to areas miles away from the capital city of Port-au-Prince.  Small towns and villages saw their populations swell by several times that of pre-quake numbers.  These people are among those I feel are at the greatest risk of not receiving follow-up treatment for their injuries and greater risk of developing new epidemics related to the lack or sanitary adequacy.  Our mobile clinic will travel to those areas.  We will visit the villages, the tent cities; anywhere earthquake victims have found refuge.

Those who would be unable to travel to obtain medical treatment, for whatever reason, will receive quality care.  Our staff will treat and dress their wounds, provide medications and supply dressings for those wounds.  And our staff will be there for emotional support, because the wounds of this tragedy will go much, much deeper than the physical injuries that they have sustained.  Many victims will develop Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which will not be addressed; this will negatively impacted the lives of families and society. Our staff will provided services in this delicate area.

LONG TERM GOALS:

The recovery process for the Haitian people will not happen overnight.  In fact the following days, weeks and even years will carry the scars that an already impoverished nation must endure.  And the international rescue and relief organizations who have so admirably responded to this tragedy will eventually diminish their presence in Haiti.  Long term recovery and a sustained process of care will fall on those organizations and agencies willing to make a long term commitment to the region.  This plan is to build such an organization, composed of medical and other Haitian volunteer professionals who are willing to make a commitment to the success of this organization.

The initiative proposed here will continue the process of providing health and dental care to the Haitian people long after the international relief efforts have faded.  We will continue to send our mobile clinic(s) to those areas where the underserved cannot travel to the nearest clinic or hospital.  This plan will place an emphasis on the children of these regions, and a program that visits the schools may well prove to be an important segment of our operation.

MOBILE CLINIC:

The cornerstone of this organization will be our first mobile clinic.  A “medical center on wheels”, this first unit will be critical to the success of our mission. Built on a medium duty commercial truck chassis, this unit will be custom built to our specifications and designed to be fully self sufficient, a necessity for the areas we will operate in. We are working with Lifeline Mobile, a manufacturer of quality mobile clinics in operation around the world, to design and build our unit. http://www.lifelinemobile.com

 

TARGETED POPULATION

This project is design to primarily provide medical care to the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

In the nights following the earthquake, many people in Haiti slept in the streets, on pavements, in their cars, or in makeshift shanty towns either because their houses had been destroyed, or they feared standing structures would not withstand aftershocks. Today, as many as one million of them live in tents cities around the capital alone, and many more have fled the capital to others cities as part of a program of the Haitian government to move homeless people out of Port-au-Prince. Children, women and elderly are the most vulnerable. ?

It will provide also dental care to children of school age whom parent can’t afford the luxury of oral care in a devastated country where people every day strive to survive, a country where people live under the poverty level, people live lack of the basic of life: water, food and shelter. In 1996 an estimate of 95% of the children in Haiti have their first dental exam after their high school at about 19 years old. The staff will provide an integrated service to all the beneficiaries of this project. Health education, general hygiene will be taught to these children to actively prevent major epidemic in the aftermath of this tragedy.

This project will participate and encourage broadcasting of health educating program through community radios to inform the population of the services of the care mobile and other health related activities. An estimate of 20,000 people will benefit directly from either one of the different components of this project; but the community impact will be far greater.

 

PARTNERSHIP & COOPERATION

The community health department will be one of the key partners of this project; the activities of the care mobile will take in consideration the public health recommendations and priorities. The care mobile will participate in vaccination campaign around the country in support to the minister of health for diseases prevention. It will participate in different community events to promote health within the communities and blood collection. During the first year, a strong cooperation with the public school will be put in place to provide dental care to this category; but also to provide counseling and psycho support to affected children. Cooperation within the legal limit will be established also with the nonprofit organizations (NGO) and the private sector.

Training

The dentist or hygienist staff volunteer will participate in some teacher meeting to provide basic training on oral care to reinforce and improving the knowledge of the children in this area. Community Mission for Haiti will encourage volunteer throughout the year to participate in offering special and specific training to the community leaders (church, school, police) for psycho social support and rehabilitation of the victims. It will encourage also shelter visits by counselors to prevent and help families with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Financing

This project is a community project it requires the involvement of its beneficiaries. It is heavily based on volunteers for it execution. Only one of its staffs, for accountability, will be a full time employee, but a part time employee as needed will be part of the staff as well. However its partnership with the health department will ultimately aim to encourage the public health department to provide staff in a near future. Furthermore, as a community project, it annual budget will come from local and international fund raising. A board of five committed volunteers with Dr Raymond Pierre will oversee and review the annual budget; it will work to recruit committed donors for this project.

CONCLUSION / IMPACT

The devastation of the earthquake in Haiti reminds us no matter where we call home, that the human struggle is a shared one; it reminds us as well the necessity to work as universal citizens to cross the mental and virtual frontier of our Sinicism and take control of our destiny as human being. Today the people of Haiti are in need they are calling for help as they are trying to do whatever they can to survive. But they won’t make it without help, maybe your help. We are all diminished by the death and destruction in this country and we are equally pained by the human suffering no matter where it takes place: the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, or 9 / 11 in New York just to recall a few. But each of them gives us the opportunity to transcend our differences to be as brother or sister for each other, and shows us how much we look alike by our differences.

Solidarity is the common word in Haiti; it can become a permanent word if we invest with them in a long term recovery but with a different strategy. Make the Haitian people be part of the interventions to help them, which means it won’t work if they are not a part of it. This is exactly what this project is about. It is an opportunity to reverse the free dependence of this nation upon the community international. It will develop in this nation the real value of cooperation and partnership. This care mobile operate by volunteers will soon be a part of their community. The impact of this project will be measured in part by the number of people that this care mobile will serve but its impact on the way of life of the people of Haiti will be qualitative and far greater.