Provide Rehabilitative Care in northern Haiti

Happy Spring!

We hope this newsletter finds you happy, healthy and thawed out from a rather chilly winter! While we have all been hunkering down dealing with some crazy weather, our Haitian friends and colleagues have hit the ground running to try and keep our clinic open. Haiti continues to experience violence, economic instability, and food insecurity. Most schools have shut down due to gang violence and very few hospitals remain open. Those that are open, often times have to close due to staffing and supply chain problems due to both COVID and violence. Despite this, the STAND clinic remains open. The STAND clinic is currently the only clinic in the Port de Paix area that is consistently open and serving the public. That being said, there is a HUGE need for our services. Our clinics are running at full steam treating patients with all kinds of diagnoses from strokes and broken bones to malnutrition and sickle cell anemia. Our clinicians are hard at work educating the public about COVID safety, blood pressure we well as skin care and hygiene.

Our pediatric clinic has really been working hard as the economic crisis and violence is hitting the children the hardest. Autumn is back in Haiti and helping to improve community access to the pediatric program. Our pediatric clinic is now averaging about 30 visits per day in addition to about 10 homecare visits per day. Each month the pediatric clinic has about 40 new patients that often times need the full gamut of treatments including vitamins, adaptive equipment and medical care. 

Our pediatric team is also working overtime to help critically ill children receive the care they need. They often times coordinate with Haiti Air Ambulance and hospitals in other parts of Haiti to ensure the children receive appropriate care. Ciara is one of those children. She started coming to the clubfoot clinic and was found to be malnourished and extremely ill. The pediatric crew worked tirelessly to get her flown to Port au Prince to get the care she needed. After three months she is now healthy and back in Port de Paix receiving the care she needs for her club feet.

Our clinicians could not do what they do without your support. They have the knowledge and the passion, but that does not mean anything without a clinic to practice in! Your continued support is key to maintain the health of the Port de Paix community!