Our Work in Haiti

Helping Haiti

On behalf of the many disabled patients you have helped with your contributions, and the many more that will be helped in future from the training that we are putting in place, we would like to thank you for your generosity. 
Haiti After the Earthquake
 
It was a humanitarian disaster beyond imagination. When a 7.0 earthquake hit Haiti in January 2010, hundreds of thousands died. Some people were trapped under rubble for days. Roughly 300,000 Haitians suffered traumatic injuries that required amputations. 
 
The injured needed immediate and long-term rehabilitation from trained professionals, but Haiti had only a handful of trained physical therapists and few orthotic and prosthetic (O&P) technicians. Port-au-Prince didn’t have any  functional O&P workshops; the earthquake destroyed facilities at both Healing Hands for Haiti and St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children, two of our longtime partners.
 
Thanks to our history of collaboration in the Caribbean, including seven years of outreach and education in Haiti, we knew we could help train new providers and heal Haiti.
 
Since the earthquake, Physicians for Peace has built on longtime partnerships and forged new relationships to train, educate and empower Haitian healthcare professionals, giving Haitians with disabilities a chance to live their lives with dignity.
 
In just three years, our donors and partners have helped us:
 
HEAL
  • Between March 2011 and April 2012 our medical educators oversaw the treatment of more than 1,140 patients at an O&P clinic in Deschapelles, while training the clinic staff and supplying important materials and supplies. Nearly 40 percent of the patients in Deschapelles were under 21. 
  • Children with disabilities in impoverished areas often go ignored, but thanks to a partnership with ChildFund International, we’re prioritizing children’s needs–creating custom-fit prosthetics that increase their physical mobility and collaborating on a summer camp that provides one-on-one interaction and psychosocial support, among other efforts.
TRAIN, EDUCATE AND INCREASE CAPACITY
  • Our medical educators invested  hours of volunteer service in Deschapelles from January 2011 to April 2012. While some of that time focused on clinical care, we also zeroed in on educational topics, including basic therapy and in-take, out-take administration, empowering Haitian staff to take ownership of the clinic.
  • With a grant from the Major League Baseball Player’s Trust (MLBT), we’re ensuring that more Haitians are qualified to meet their country’s healthcare needs. The MLBT grant has already helped support The Orthotic & Prosthetic Distance Learning program through Don Bosco University, a landmark project that provides vital training for Haitian technicians. We’ve also worked alongside Healing Hands for Haiti International and St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children to rebuild their facilities, which were destroyed in the earthquake.
COLLABORATE 
To reduce redundancies and deliver the best possible services, we partner with like-minded agencies whenever possible. In Haiti, we’re proud to work alongside these groups, and through the support of the following major donors:
  • Catholic Medical Mission Board
  • ChildFund International
  • Haitian Amputee Coalition, a leading consortium of public-private organizations dedicated to serving Haitian families with disabilities. Founding members include Physicians for Peace, as well as Albert Schweitzer Hospital, Hanger Ivan R Sable Foundation, the Harold and Kayrita Anderson Family Foundation and the Shepherd Center
  • Healing Hands for Haiti 
  • Major League Baseball Player’s Trust
  • The Red Thread Promise
  • St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children 
(home to Haiti’s oldest O&P workshop)

 

Program: 
Walking Free