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Health Care
While it is impossible to know the exact number, the Haitian government estimates that the quake took an estimated 217,366 lives and caused just as many injuries. In the days and weeks following the disaster, Haiti’s healthcare infrastructure was overwhelmed as injured and sick people flooded hospitals and clinics.
In the period immediately following the earthquake, CEDDISEC organized ambulance services for injured persons as well as removal of the deceased to the General Hospital. Approximately 20 injured victims were transported to Cange (80 km northeast of Port au Prince). Thirty children from St. Vincent’s School for the Handicapped in Port-au-Prince were relocated to Montrouis (75 km northwest of Port-au-Prince) for safety. Transport services worked long hours to help survivors reach medical care and secure shelter, and CEDDISEC staff and volunteers prepared for removal the bodies of those who had died.
Episcopal Relief & Development worked closely with the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti and other partners to provide health care to as many survivors as possible. In Phase I, CEDDISEC provided health care to 20,890 individuals. This included 6,641 individuals assisted at a temporary clinic established on the grounds of College St. Pierre in Port-au-Prince, and 14,249 individuals assisted through mobile medical clinics conducted in remote areas severely affected by the earthquake.
In February and March, 94 mobile health clinics served remote rural populations in more than 70 communities in the Léogane, Carrefour, Jacmel, Bainet, Grand-Goave, Gressier, Arcahaie, and Croix des Bouquets communes. The clinics were staffed by 29 Haitian doctors and nurses. In conjunction with 15 Episcopal parishes and approximately 40 mission stations, six mobile medical teams (with two doctors and two nurses per team) treated and educated between 1,500 and 1,900 individuals per week.
Medical supplies for the mobile clinic care teams were secured in part through Episcopal Relief & Development’s partnerships with the Episcopal Diocese of the Dominican Republic and IMA World Health. Supplies were also secured by CEDDISEC through local purchases and donations from NGOs and UN Battalions in Haiti.
Mobile Medical Clinics:
The Phase II objective of the health care program was to provide two additional months of mobile medical clinics to 70 communities in the Léogâne area, thus providing medical and psycho-social care to 1,300 individuals per week.
From April to May of Phase II, Episcopal Relief & Development supported CEDDISEC in providing health care to 21,234 individuals, including 13,086 adults and 8,148 children.
While fewer mobile medical clinics were deployed than planned, due to transportation and logistical constraints, CEDDISEC managed to provide health care to twice as many people as anticipated. This was due to the careful identification of communities in need and the scheduling of clinics in remote rural locations where the populations were truly underserved.
From the start of the mobile medical clinic program in February 2010 through its conclusion in May 2010, a total of 42,124 people received health care through 203 mobile medical clinics. This included 25,870 adults and 14,254 children. The 203 mobile medical clinics were facilitated by 15 Episcopal parishes and more than 40 mission stations in over 70 locations in Léogâne, Bainet, Jacmel, Grand-Goave, Gressier, Carrefour, Port-au-Prince, Delmas, Petion-ville, Croix des Bouquets, and Arachaie.
Mobile medical clinics provided both medical care and health education to individuals who are unable to travel to visit hospitals and other health facilities. The most common ailments treated included gastro-intestinal problems, respiratory infections, malaria, anemia and malnutrition. Health education addressed the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases, how to maintain basic sanitation in spite of crowding and scarce resources, and cultural perspectives on hypertension, anemia, and gastritis.
Hôpital Ste. Croix:
Léogâne-ville’s Hôpital Ste. Croix (HSC), built in 1973-74 by the Episcopal Church of Haiti, was once the most important and centrally-located general hospital in the Department of the West.
Episcopal Relief & Development is providing operational support to HSC which will, in cooperation with other efforts to rehabilitate the hospital, enable it to respond to the increased demand for services and restore its potential to serve the region. This support will continue through December 2010 and is accompanied by the hiring of a consultant to help build administrative systems that will support service restoration and improved patient care.
With Episcopal Relief & Development’s operational support, the hospital is delivering outpatient services to an estimated 200 patients per day. Following the renovation of a temporary in-patient wing, officially opened by Bishop Duracin on September 22 the hospital is also equipped to deliver inpatient care to up to 24 individuals per day.
Episcopal Relief & Development’s administrative systems support to the hospital includes the identification and mentoring of hospital leadership, the systematization of accounting processes for designated funding streams, and the transition of the hospital’s governance structure to ensure deeper representation from local leaders within the Haitian health community.
