Students from Gardner High School, Oakmont Regional High School, Shrewsbury High School, North Middlesex Regional High School, and Marianapolis Preparatory School in Connecticut will travel with Forward in Health to Les Cayes, Haiti.The 10 students will be accompanied by 4 adults.The students cultural experience will include a day in the city of Grand Guave with Mission of Hope and helping with their 30 orphaned children, cooking dinner for the nursing home residents of the Foyer in Les Cayes, a day helping the nuns of The Missionaries of Charity in Les Cayes, and a wellness clinic on the land owned by Forward in Health and site of our future medical clinic.
Forward in Health has published a calendar for 2009. The calendar is composed of pictures from our trips to Haiti in 2008. The calendar is available for a donation of $50 or more to Forward in Health.
Since completion of our wall around the clinic land, the next phase of construction was to secure the wall with an iron gate. Thanks to a generous donation from the Lions Club of Gardner, Massachusetts, this is now complete. The gate was made by Evenel, the driver for groups who travel to Haiti with Forward in Health. Our director in Haiti, Roudy, had a local artist paint the logo of the Gardner Rotary Club on the door.
In preparation for construction of our clinic to begin in 2009 we needed to construct a security wall. Through the hard work of our director Roudy we were able to complete construction of the wall in July, 2008. The wall is 10 feet high and completely encircles our 3 1/2 acres of land.
From October 5-12, 2008, a group of 18 medical and lay people traveled to Les Cayes, Haiti. Clinics were conducted on 5 days and a total of over 900 adults and children were seen by doctors and nurses. For the first time adults were screened for high blood pressure and anemia. This was the first medical trip since the devastating effects of 4 hurricanes struck Haiti in august and September. Due to the flooding gas stations in Les Cayes were all closed. Gas was brought in by barrels, cut in half with kerosene, and sold on the side of the road. Our medical care and presence was appreciated as much as ever.
The country of Haiti, by all standards the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, has been beaten over the past 4 weeks by four hurricanes back-to-back-to-back-to-back.A devastating month for a country with poor infrastructure and ability to handle natural disasters.
A UNICEF press release dated Monday September 8, 2008, before the affects of Hurricane Ike were known, reads in part, “ Flooding caused by rains that lashed Haiti after a recent series of back-to-back hurricanes has affected an estimated 650,000 people, of which 300,000 are children.The aftermath of Hurricanes Fay, Gustav and Hanna, which have passed through the region in close succession over the past three weeks, has forced thousands of people to flee to their rooftops.”
Forward in Health will be sending a medical team of 18 from October 5th-12th, 2008..The trip has been planned for several months and includes doctors, nurses, and various non-medical lay personnel.Among those traveling will be Dan Moen, CEO of Heywood Hospital in Gardner, Ma. and Lisa Piehler, CEO of The American Red Cross of Central Massachusetts.
Members of Forward in Health have had a presence in Les Cayes, Haiti conducting pediatric clinics for a week at a time since 2001.Currently FIH is working to build a permanent medical clinic near Les Cayes for a permanent, not sporadic medical presence.Traveling to Haiti 2-3 times per year has taken a toal on the hockey bags Forward in Health (FIH) has usedto bring medical supplies down to Haiti.After the last trip in July many of the bags were held together by duct tape and hope.
The Worcester Sharks have answered an appeal by Lisa Piehler for hockey bags.The Sharks have generously agreed to donate 20 new hockey bags.Each will be packed with 50 pounds of medications and medical supplies. Sharks President and CEO Michael Lehr and Sharks Director of Youth Hockey and Community Relations Michael Myers represented the Sharks in their donation, which was made possible by Mary DeFeudis, Chairwoman of Sharks Charities. Chuck Thuss of Southern Sports Supply and Vinny Ferraiuolo, were instrumental in accomplishing this charitable effort.
John mulqueen, M.D., president of Forward in Health, spoke for the organization.“We have always been grateful to those who have donated their used hockey bag.They have been used until they could not be used any further, usually 3 or 4 trips.We are indebted to the Worcester Sharks for donating new hockey bags.Without the support of the people of Worcester county, we would not be able to do the work that we do for the poorest of the poor in Haiti.”
During the week long medical mission FIH will conduct 5 clinic days seeing 200-250 children each day.Most will be children without medical care except for when FIH travels to Les Cayes.
While in Les Cayes Lisa Piehler will be meeting with the International Red Cross in Haiti, along with working at the pediatric clinics.
Forward in Health co-founder and board member Paula Mulqueen, RN was recently highlighted in the Mount Wachusett Community e-mail newsletter. The article can be found at http://www.mwcc.edu/info/newsarchive/news120707.html.
A medical team lead by John Harrington, MD traveled to Haiti from February 5-12, 2008. The following is the account of the director of Hope for Haiti located in Les Cayes.
Saturday, February 10, 2008
Program Director
Saturday at 2pm Hope for Haiti received a call from an American medical student, Abbey, who is volunteering with Maison de Naissance (House of Birth) in the South of Haiti, that she had met a elderly woman who had been badly burned and who was in need of medical help. The woman had fallen into a cooking fire pit 15 days ago and had 3rd degree burns along her right ear, shoulder, and upper back. The wounds were bleeding and dripping with puss and obviously excruciating. This elderly woman, also blind and suffering from dementia, was too poor and physically incapable to travel anywhere to receive medical care. She lived in a rural area outside of Torbeck (approx. 30 minutes South of Les Cayes), living in a dirt floor and a banana leaf woven house. Abbey asked if there was anyone who Hope for Haiti could call or a place the woman could go to receive some help. If she was unable to get medical attention, her wounds would eventually become severely infected and her chances for survival would be incredibly low.
Luckily Hope for Haiti knew of a medical team from Massachusetts who was in Les Cayes for the week with the organization called Forward in Health. After talking with one of the doctors from the organization, Mike, and his sister Judy, they offered to go see the woman to offer whatever care was possible. By 3pm, Hope for Haiti’s Operation Director, had picked up the doctor and a collaborative team from Forward in Health, Hope for Haiti, and Maison de Naissance were on their way to the woman’s home with a bucket of clean water, burn cream and bandages, and medical personnel.
Upon arrival, we found a frail looking woman, naked from waist up, who was walking toward us with her burned side visible. Immediately the village community surrounded us full of curiosity and intrigue. Dr. Mike began to evaluate her wounds and her overall condition. The entire top layer of burned skin was necessary to take off in order for the layer underneath to be cleaned and properly medicated. Unfortunately, if this was to be done, the woman would be in need of continued care and it was obvious that she had no means and no one to care for her. The only facility that we could trust where she would receive adequate care without cost was for her to go to Missionaries of Charity in Les Cayes. With that as a possible option Dr. Mike decided to just clean the burned area and dress it appropriately.
We explained to the community that we would be bringing the woman to receive medical attention at the Missionaries of Charity in Les Cayes. We then searched through the woman’s clothes rolled up in a ball in the corner of her house and dressed her in her most beautiful dress. The woman’s first stop was to Hope for Haiti’s residence to receive a proper meal and a well-deserved prestige. Not knowing how to use a fork or spoon, the woman started feeling around on the plate for what she wanted to eat first. She ate as if she hadn’t eaten in days. Handful after handful she continued to eat until we feared that she might make herself sick. After 45 minutes her speed of eating had started to slow… she finished her prestige and prepared herself for her departure.
Arriving at the Missionaries of Charity, the woman received her own bed immediately where she was quick to lay her head down. The Sisters checked her in and assured us that she would receive good care. By 6pm this woman had been washed, medically consulted, well fed and now sleeping for the first time in her life on a real mattress with a real pillow. Abbey let out a sigh of relief knowing that tonight, this woman was safe and in good hands.
Today was a wonderful example of the collaborative efforts of the various organizations working on the ground in Haiti. In just hours a team was able to come together to provide care to a woman who would have otherwise have had no means to survive. Hope for Haiti thanks Abbey for making the call, Forward in Health for mobilizing so quickly, and Missionaries of Charity for making sure that this one woman was not forgotten. When all resources are available and deployed, we can truly make a difference…
The first phase of construction for an eventual 2 story 10,000 sq. ft medical clinic with living space on the second floor has begun. Construction of a 10 ft. high wall around the entire 3 1/2 acres of property began in January 2008. Large rocks, stones and sand have been loaded by hand onto trucks and transported to our land in Fonde Fred. A shallow well has been dug by hand to supply water needed for mixing with cement to make the concrete blocks. Construction in Haiti is expensive in part because building supplies such as cement are expensive and it is so labor intensive. The wall should be completed by the end of April, 2008.
