Now Available: Haiti Together We Move!

Before the earthquake last year, poor Haitians had never had access to comprehensive, high quality orthopedic surgery. That has changed. Haiti Adventist Hospital in Port au Prince is now providing world class orthopedic care to all patients at no charge. The project is in need of long term funding. A high quality coffee table book has been published to raise funds to support this work.

HAITI TOGETHER WE MOVE tells the story of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers to treat thousands of patients at Hopital Adventiste d' Haiti. Prior to the earthquake, this small mission hospital did not have the capability to perform significant orthopedic surgery. That was changed by the arrival of millions of dollars worth of equipment, implants and orthopedic specialists in the days and weeks after January 12, 2010. As the earthquake victims were treated, other patients with preexisting orthopedic problems started coming to the hospital as well. Acquired, congenital and developmental deformities of the upper and lower extremities are regularly being successfully treated. The substantial costs of this project are currently being born by the hospital and generous donors, including Loma Linda University. This model does not have long term sustainability for several reasons. An endowment has been created to fund this project in perpetuity. The Haitian Indigent Patient Endowment will subsidize orthopedic care at Haiti Adventist Hospital.

Image by Ron Haviv

The coffee table book is a collection of images from very well known professional photographers (Ron Haviv above and Antonio Bolfo below). Supplementary photos provided by volunteers involved in the project help tell the stories. The beauty of Haiti and the Haitian people and their culture is portrayed. First hand accounts of experiences in the chaotic days immediately following the disaster tie the pictures together. The months that have followed have been filled with remarkable interactions of volunteers caring for Haitians who have in many cases suffered for years with their deformities.

Every dollar donated to this project will be an integral part of the endowment. The interest generated by the fund will be used to subsidize the cost of providing care for these patients with little or no resources. As the donated implants are used, they need to be replaced. Maintenance of expensive equipment is an ongoing challenge in every hospital and Haiti Adventist Hospital is no exception. Important and complementary medical services are lacking and require funding to be developed. Hospital staffing is inadequate to care for the volumes of poor patients needing care. Haiti and Haiti Adventist Hospital have needs beyond needs. 

Image by Antonio Bolfo

The ongoing generosity of highly trained orthopedic and anesthesia specialists is one of the core elements that is making it possible for this project to continue. Teams continue to arrive weekly to provide free care. Members of the teams bring needed medications and operating room supplies including sterile drapes, gowns, gloves. Replacement orthopedic implants including rods, plates and screws are also generously donated. In addition, these volunteers pay their travel costs and all of the costs associated with their time at the hospital. The accommodations continue to be spartan. As funding becomes available, these needs can be addressed and the project can grow and improve and expand the care being provided.

Click here to donate and to purchase the book.

Father/Daughter Team Serves In Haiti

Brock Cummings and his daughter Chloe recently returned from a volunteer stint at Hopital Adventiste in Port au Prince.  Dr Cummings is an orthopaedic surgeon in private practice in Paradise, California.  Chloe Cummings is going to be entering her senior year in high school and is entertaining several options in the health care field upon graduation.

Chole wrote on her blog Tape and Tarp, "Our 2011 trip to Haiti was unlike anything we've ever experienced. We saw God working through the volunteers as well as the Haitian people themselves. We learned lessons about service, humility, medicine, and the local culture. Throughout the ups and downs, we know it's a trip we'll never forget."

If there are any health care professionals reading who are looking for a potentially life-changing summer "vacation" for you and your offspring, spend a week volunteering at Hopital Adventiste.  Contact Amy at arussell@llu.edu for more details.

Father and daughter team in action

View more images from the Cummings' trip here.

CURE Clubfoot Program

A year and a half ago, a deadly earthquake shattered lives in Haiti. The CURE Clubfoot program in that country was shattered as well, but it was quickly re-established and is once again bringing healing to children throughout Haiti. Recently, Dr. Robert Cady, Co-Medical Director of CURE Clubfoot in Haiti, and Mr. John Mitchell, of MD Orthopaedics (a designer of braces used in the treatment of clubfoot), visited that country, joining Kendy Bellegarde, country coordinator of CURE Clubfoot in Haiti, to see the program in action and lend a hand as they went. 

Haiti: Together We Move

In Haiti: Together We Move, readers will be guided through the events that transpired at Haiti Adventist Hospital in the 12 months following the devastating earthquake.

The story begins just two days after the earthquake with amazing pictures and accounts of the immediate responders to Port au Prince.

Heroic stories and accounts of life saving operations are woven with vivid, moving photographs taken by numerous professional photographers including Paul Sebring and Cosmin Cosma.

With each turn of the page you will travel and experience the events that transformed Haiti Adventist Hospital from a rescue orthopedic center to what is now one of the main referral centers in all of Haiti and a leader in providing orthopedic care for the indigent.

Chronic, life altering orthopedic conditions are now treated on a daily basis and these stories are shared through the first person accounts of over 30 volunteer doctors, nurses and volunteers who traveled to Port au Prince to serve those in need. Haiti: Together We Move is 108 pages of incredible stories and photographs that will open your eyes and hearts to those in need in Haiti. We invite you to purchase a copy for yourself and help support the thousands in need all across Haiti.

Pre-order the book here.

Headed Back To Haiti

Team Sinai is readying themselves for a return engagement at Hopital Adventiste.  Official Team Sinai blogger, Merrill Chaus writes:

"From the moment we left after our weeklong mission last June, we couldn’t wait to go back. We had an amazing, life altering experience, and were able to help over 50 indigent patients who needed orthopedic surgery. Many were originally injured in the earthquake of January 12, 2010, and some were more recent trauma victims, and many were children with birth defects. We had arranged to return to Adventiste Hopital over the Christmas break, 2010, but our plans were thwarted by political and civil instability surrounding the December elections. Things in Port-au-Prince got pretty hairy, prompting American Airlines to temporarily suspend flights. Moreover, the organization hosting us, Adventist Health International, decided to temporarily evacuate their expatriate staff at Adventiste to the Dominican Republic. By the time the smoke settled, we had lost our travel window. Over the next few months, we planned, calculated, and regrouped, and finally were able to reschedule our mission to this June 2011. Most of the original 18-team members from last year were not able to make the new date, but we have successfully recruited replacements."

Led by internationally renowned pediatric orthopaedic surgeon, John Herzenberg, MD, Team Sinai is enthusiastic, motivated, and highly competent.  Both Drs Scott Nelson and Terry Dietrich hold this group in high regard and have greatly appreciated their contribution to date.  Follow their progress on the Team Sinai blog.

Scott Nelson Update From Hopital Adventiste

A 7 year old boy with a scarred and contracted leg hops up and down the street in front of Hôpital Adventiste. He has been doing this for the last 5 years since his leg was burned. He lives with his 9 year old brother, their parents are dead. Never before has there been hope. An excision of some scar tissue with full thickness skin grafting and specialized external fixation  was performed.

Read the rest of Dr Nelson's recent trip report here.

Long Time No Hear

We have not posted any new updates from Hopital Adventiste for several weeks and will continue to assume a peripheral role as long as more viable news options exist.  haitibones.org readers are encouraged to follow the development of HAH's orthopaedic program on Terry and Jeanie Dietrich's Caribbean Orthopedics blog.  Terry and Jeanie have been posting progress reports on a regular basis and we've found them to be most informative.

You can also follow the Dietrich team on Facebook and on their official webpage, Orthopedic Ministries of the Caribbean.

There exists a continuing need for volunteers including orthopaedic surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses and physical therapists.  Contact LLU Global Health or email Terry directly at tj.dietrich99@gmail.com for more information.