Update February 20,2010: To Date, Over 20,000 Patients Treated By Medical Teams Working with QCRC

Quisqueya Crisis Relief Center is pleased to announce the treatment of over 20, 000 people by medical teams working with them.

These teams have come from all over the world, namely, the United States, Germany, Aruba, Canada, and South Korea, to name a few countries. Every morning and evening, the air is filled with English, Spanish, German, Korean, and Dutch, as well as the national languages (Kreyol and French). 

 Loading Up For CDTI-Damaged, But Operational
QCRC helps these teams treat every issue imaginable (from headaches to life-threatening bone fractures) by providing food, lodging, and transportation. We also work with the local hospitals (remember, over 80% of all medical institutions have been damaged or destroyed) to make sure that personnel are working in the most needed areas, including mobile clinics in remote areas of Haiti.

Ted  Coordinates Transportation to Hopital Adventiste (Diquini)

Even with all of the teams that we have received, the need is still enormous. We will need medical teams for the next 9 months AT LEAST. Haiti will now face the 2nd wave of this disaster, which will be a severe rise in infectious diseases. Without proper care, many people who survived the initial trauma of the quake will die from illnesses that are totally treatable.

Grim Reality-Port-au-Prince, 1 Month Later
 

Refugees Hoping for a Canadian Visa
 


Preventive, primary and emergency care is our main focus as we keep the local hospitals and clinics from being totally overwhelmed. This can be done. We can help by providing tetanus shots, treatments for malaria, typhoid, other infectious diseases, and so much more. Please join us as we stand in the gap for Haiti.

Fairfax Community Church- Devotions

New Generator Delivered To Hopital Canape-Vert

QCRC facilitated the delivery of a 175kW diesel generator to Canape-Vert Hospital on February 18, 2010, at 11:00 am local time.

The generator was provided by USAID, delivered by members of the United States Army, and will be installed by Valerio Canez, a local company.

The unit was received by Wilio Louis, who is in charge of maintenance at Canape-Vert, and will replace a 275kW generator which was out of order for quite some time.

This will allow the hospital to perform life-saving operations and continue to treat the local population. The surrounding area is severely damaged and the largest school (Ecole Canape-Vert) is completely destroyed.

 175kW generator

Backing into Hopital Canape-Vert


Setting it in place

Inside the generator

Reality in Haiti

After the earthquake many people suffered broken limbs and broken lives.  Houses were gone, sometimes family members are gone.  In order to "set" broken limbs doctors use an external fixator to hold the limb steady.


Buildings are down and lives are forever changed.  







When people lose their houses, they need a place to stay...
even if it's in front of the National Palace.

Saturday, February 13 Update

Today's update includes a special feature on the German doctors of Humedica, a medical crisis relief non-profit. The first Humedica rapid-response medical team arrived in Haiti within just a few days of the quake and were among the first medical personnel in the area. Several teams of Humedica doctors have rotated through our camp here at Quisqueya, and they have arranged for more teams to arrive. This rotational system creates a continuity of care that greatly benefits patients.
The Humedica doctors are currently operating out of Hope Hospital, known locally as Hopital Espoir. This hospital, located in the same neighborhood as Quisqueya, was swamped in the days following the quake. It sustained very little damage and medical care is operating both inside the facility and outside in tents.
The supply room at Hopital Espoir. As new Humedica teams rotate into Haiti, they bring life-saving supplies like these.
A pediatric nurse with Humedica changes the bandage on a little boy who is healing from a lower-leg fracture. A makeshift traction system was created out of bandages and a brick.
Humedica's head nurse distributes medicines near a large ceiling crack. A German engineer evaluated the building as secure for patients and staff to use, but surface cracks do appear in a few walls.
Francesca and her mother rest in a corner at Hopital Espoir. Francesca's mother is recovering from an ankle injury and is learning how to get around on donated crutches. One urgent need in Haiti is for physical and occupational therapists, as thousands of new amputees are adjusting to life after their surgeries.
A woman, nine months pregnant, paces the hallways as she approaches delivery. Fortunately, an OB-GYN was present to assist with her labor and make sure mother and baby will be healthy. Haiti has one of the world's highest rates of infant mortality.
Baby Christie sleeps in the Pediatric Ward at Hopital Espoir. Christie is a twin. She and her sister, Christelle, were born ten days before the devastating earthquake and suffer from malnutrition. Tragically, their mother died in childbirth. Christie and Christelle are being cared for by Humedica doctors at Espoir.
Little Jedna is cared for by a Humedica pediatric nurse named Saskia. Jedna's mother and father were both killed in the earthquake. Jedna is now in the care of Hope Orphanage, a home for children that is associated with Hope Hospital. The orphanage staff brought her in immediately after the quake, and she is receiving treatment for pneumonia and a case of scabies.
Humedica pediatric nurse Saskia feeds Christie, a Haitian infant delivered just 10 days before the quake who is suffering from malnutrition.
Humedica medical supplies await distribution to patients. We are so grateful for Humedica's doctors for serving alongside Quisqueya!

In other news from the Quisqueya Crisis Relief Center, we are running at full capacity.
Staff members Els and Kynada pour over medical mission team details to decide how best to arrange all the groups in our sleeping quarters.
Nutritious baby food arrives to feed local infants and keep malnourishment at bay.
A medical team from the Red Cross of Aruba proudly marks the entrance to their sleeping quarters.

Thursday, February 11 Update

Yesterday two doctors and several nurses set up a mini-clinic to serve the Haitians living on our campus whose homes were destroyed. With so many children, it is especially important to see to their medical needs.

This doctor made sure to explain to his patient's father how to administer her medicine.  Since donated medicines' labels are largely in English, it is important for doctors to take the time to clearly communicate the plan for treatment.

This little patient was happy to receive some love and attention in addition to her medical checkup!
 Doctors report seeing fewer earthquake-related injuries among this group and more general sicknesses, such as ear infections.
Children from the families of Quisqueya staff members wait in line to see doctors at yesterday's mini-clinic on Quisqueya campus. We were happy to see that two children with special medical needs are both doing well: 5-year-old Quincy, who suffered a broken femur in the quake, and two-week-old Thalina, who was born on our campus.
At our nightly meeting for each medical team's leaders, we fill out this transportation needs whiteboard to organize which groups need to travel to each hospital, and at what time, the following day.

Today, we have 10 medical teams staying on campus, with a total of 149 medical personnel our serving at various hospitals around Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas each day.
A cheerful sight on campus yesterday was seeing dozens of pink scrubs hanging on the laundry line. A group of doctors associated with Catholic Relief Services and the University of Maryland wears their characteristic pink scrubs as a team each day.

The Haitian government has declared Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to be National Days of Prayer as we approach the one-month anniversary of the devastating earthquake. Please join us in prayer for the healing and rebuilding of the nation of Haiti and all its people.

Tuesday, February 9 Update

Today featured several new arrivals of medical mission teams, including one team of doctors from the Red Cross of the island of Aruba. These Dutch and Spanish speakers will be serving at Community Hospital starting tomorrow morning and are staying on our campus. A third rotation of 12 more doctors from Mission to the World have arrived from all over the US after just meeting yesterday in the airport. A third wave of doctors from Water for Life (located in Fort Wayne, Indiana) is also staying here at Quisqueya along with several other teams.

Tomorrow at 7 am, two doctors with experience as general practitioners will be conducting a mini-clinic to serve the families of Quisqueya Christian School Haitian staff members whose homes were destroyed. These families have been staying on campus, and our commitment to care for them includes arranging for physicians to check out their needs periodically. This is especially important considering the many children among this group, including 5-year-old Quincy, who is recovering from a femur fracture sustained during the earthquake, and little Thalina, who was born on our campus just two weeks ago.

Representatives from Comprehensive Disaster Response Services stopped by our nightly team leaders' meeting with a team of doctors from the Islamic Medical Association of North America. We helped find a place for their 50 doctors currently in the country to serve. The CDRS in currently in the middle of its third rotation of doctors, with four more rotations lined up to come in the next few weeks. CDRS has set up a medical facility in a former amusement park, and treated over 650 patients today. We are excited to help mobilize their doctors. The representative from CDRS shared a compliment that he is so impressed by Quisqueya's willingness to share our medical supplies and pharmaceuticals with other medical groups- he said that was rare, and enabled them to serve more Haitians.

Our German doctors continue working at Hospital Espoir. Today one of our translators working with the German doctors, Jamie, reported that Dr. Good had treated a severely malnourished child who appeared to be only 8 or 9 months old. After a physical examination revealed a full set of teeth, Dr. Good was shocked to hear the mother confirm that the child was in fact 2 years old. The young mother suffers from extreme poverty coupled with her own developmental and cognitive delays. Dr. Good and his translator Jamie were able to coach the mother on how to feed her child more nutritious foods and to refer them to a feeding program operating nearby. They also fed the child high-calorie blend that we have received as a donation.

As part of our nightly meeting, Quisqueya staff member Miquette Denie shared needs that local medical facilities have called to share with us. A facility in Petit Goave, over 3 hours away, has called seeking doctors. They have enough staff to operate tomorrow, but will have to close on Thursday if no staff can volunteer there. We'll make sure their needs are met. Miquette was also able to match up our doctors with needs shared by Grace Children's (near Delmas 31), a local orphanage, and several local tent cities.

The lead administrator in charge of CDTI hospital joined us again for our meeting tonight. She shared that it is imperative to tell any doctors planning on coming to serve in Haiti that malaria prophylaxis and CDC-recommended travel shots are mandatory. As we head into typhoid season and heavy rains (which bring malaria-carrying mosquitoes), we do not want our caretakers becoming ill themselves.

One final need being repeatedly expressed is that Haiti is lacking physical therapists. The huge number of new amputees and patients recovering from fractures means that there are thousands of earthquake victims seeking prosthetics, crutches, canes, physical therapy, wheelchairs, and other assistance. None of our doctors present knew of a single physical therapist in the country. Several facilities are seeking anyone with PT experience to help patients begin moving and walking again as they recover from bone fractures and amputations.
One extra-special treat for our aid workers came on Sunday night. After lots of work by some very dedicated staff members, an outdoor theater was created using white bedsheets, soccer goals, duct tape, and a projector. Members of the US Army staying on campus were excited to join Quisqueya staff and medical mission teams to watch the Super Bowl.

Command Center

Relief operation leader Ted Steinhauer meets with doctors from the German aid group Kinder Not Hilfe in our command center.