Haiti Mission

report by Sara Dail.

On March 20, 2010, ten individuals landed in Port-au-Prince to serve the wonderful people of Cite Soleil and the surrounding areas, suburbs of Port au Prince. Four doctors were on this team – Dr. Robert Majors, Dr. Lee Blackburn, Dr. Martin van Cleeff, and Dr. Richard Michal. Two nurses were involved – Ms. Gloria Peterson who works with Dr. van Cleeff and Ms. Betty Michal who is the wife of Dr. Michal. Ms. Brittany Montgomery, a second year medical school student from Iowa and Mr. Harris Wexler, a newly accepted medical school student for next year also worked with the team. Philip Dail and Randy Wiersma were team leaders.

Back row, left to right: Randy Wiersma, Martin van Cleeff, Lee Blackburn and Bob Majors. .Second row, left to right: Pastor Leon Dorleans, Betty Michal, Richard Michal, Britanny Montgomery, Philip Dail and Harris Wexler. Front: Gloria Peterson

Pastor Leon Dorleans of Haiti Outreach Ministries has an amazing presence in Port-au-Prince. He’s built 4 community centers, yet can be easily described as a powerful and yet humble man, loving and yet firm, visionary and yet completely aware of each day’s needs.

The community centers are located in Blanchard, Cite Soleil, Repatriate, and Ibo Beach. Plans are in place for a fifth center at Bon Repose. At this point, the centers at Blanchard and Cite Soleil are operational. Blanchard was virtually undamaged in the earthquake whereas Cite Soleil and Repatriate sustained a lot of damage. The church at Repatriate was totally destroyed. These areas are classified as the poorest slums in the Western Hemisphere, but poverty is not in the hearts and spirits of the people. The living conditions are difficult, but the people are amazing, warm, friendly, determined and some of the most optimistic people you will find.

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Our accommodations were better than we expected. We were fortunate to have excellent showers and bathroom facilities just outside our sleeping areas. The food was remarkable. Cooked over open flame, we were treated to some of the best grilled fare, fresh vegetables, rice, beans and more. Having eaten the local cuisine of many countries, this is as good as it gets.

We held clinic at Cite Soleil. The original clinic had sustained serious damage requiring us to set up operations outside. During our 4 days there, we documented serving 680 patients not including returns for follow up. We completed a patient ‘chart’ on each individual and saw people dealing with post-disaster trauma such as depression, sleep problems and a host of common health issues.

The range of patient conditions was extensive. Seriously ill individuals were sent directly to local hospitals. We suspected typhoid in one young man. A small baby with severe pneumonia was listless. Others came with less life threatening conditions, but nonetheless serious needs. There are estimated to be fewer than 700 physicians in Haiti, a ratio of 1 physician for every 15,000 citizens compared to 1 physician per 650 Americans. We provided everything free including all medications.

Your donations made this possible. Already plans are being made for a dental team to go as well as the return of a medical team at some point. We will keep you posted.

Update on Haiti

From Philip and Sara Dail, owners of Beleza:

We are still receiving support from our customers for the Haiti outreach.  We still have a definite need for vitamins, especially chewable forms, pain medications such as Tylenol or Ibuprofen (not aspirin), skin rash ointments especially those with hydro-cortisone, and benadryl tablets. Please remember that donations are eligible for tax credit through Together We Can, Inc.  All donations for Haiti received by the end of February can still be used on your 2009 tax returns.

We need these by March 15 since the medical team that Philip is taking to Haiti is leaving March 20.  This team has already purchased all medications that are not over-the-counter and so this help would be great!  Just drop this by the store.

MERCI in Goldsboro is still shipping items and will be for a long time.  You can see their list of items here.  MERCI You can continue to bring these items to Beleza.

Monday morning Philip met with a woman who had just returned from three weeks of helping set up temporary clinics in Haiti.  She told him about a woman who walked in with her lower arm wrapped in dirty strips of cloth.  When asked about her arm, she said it hurt a little.  When the medical personnel looked at her arm, they saw mostly exposed bone and not much else. She had received no medical attention since the earthquake.  They sent her for an amputation.  How this woman is alive is hard to understand.  This just points to what we all know.  There will be need for caring support in this country for a long time.

Thank you for all your support.
Sara and Philip

Haiti Disaster Relief

From BBC News:

“The 7.0-magnitude quake, Haiti’s worst in two centuries, struck south of Port-au-Prince, on Tuesday. Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive told US network CNN he believed more than 100,000 people had died. The Red Cross says up to three million people are affected.

The quake, which struck about 15km (10 miles) south-west of Port-au-Prince, was quickly followed by two aftershocks of 5.9 and 5.5 magnitude.The first tremor had hit at 1653 local time (2153 GMT) on Tuesday, the US Geological Survey said. Phone lines to the country failed shortly afterwards.”

Beleza is teaming up with MERCI, which is sponsored by the United Methodist Church, to get goods in the hands of the people quickly. If you want to donate any of these items to this cause, you can deliver them to Beleza (2014 Cameron Street Raleigh, NC 27605).

Items Needed for Haiti Right Away!
Basic Needs
Blankets
Sheets
Towels
Wash Clothes
Health Kits*
Food
Tarps

Medical Needs
Plastic or Fiberglass Casting
Suture 3-0,4-0 Nylon
Suture Instrument Kits
Betadine
4×4 Dressing
Roll Gauze
Web Roll for Casting
Saline IV and Irrigation
Injectible Pain Medication
Injectible Antibiotics IV and IM Rocephin, ANCEF, KFLEX
External Fixture
Tools to put them in (tool boxes??)
Traction Bows and Pins

*A Health Kit contains specific items:
1 hand towel (15” x 25” up to 17” x 27”)
1 wash cloth
1 comb (large and sturdy, not pocket-sized)
1 nail file or fingernail clippers (no emery boards or toenail clippers)
1 bath-size bar of soap (3 oz and up)
1 toothbrush (single brush only in original wrapper; no child-sized brushes)
1 large tube of toothpaste
6 adhesive plastic strip sterile bandages
All items should be placed inside a sealed one-gallon plastic bag. No money, notes, religious or political literature, or other items should be placed in the kits.

The people of Haiti need your help!!!