I have spoken by phone with Dr. Bielema. The team at Double Harvest continues to change and has received additional patients from outlying areas. They have a full surgical schedule today and are happy to report that they have delivered some healthy babies at Double Harvest.
A new team met last night to coordinate logistics. We are working with Partners In Health to establish a plan for ongoing care. We expect that we will continue to have teams traveling to Haiti for months to come. I sincerely appreciate all of the support that everyone has given.
I also want to acknowledge the support of all the people at OAM and Anesthesia Medical Consultants who have generously given their time, money, and selves to this cause. In addition, we have gotten supplies from Spectrum Health, Synthes, and other generous partners. Amway and Steelcase have been invaluable in providing us logistical and transportation support as well. Without these efforts we would be unable to have the impact that we have been able to provide.
In terms of long term needs, it is a situation that continues to evolve and we will need to be reassessed at regular intervals. There is a need for surgeons and anesthesiologists and I thank all of those who have volunteered. Mark Asperheim is coordinating the physician scheduling. Terry Endres has done a great job of working with the provisioning for this trip and I also thank Judy Zane, Tim Mullen and Mike Fitzgerald who have done a great deal of coordination.
We are working on setting up a donation opportunity electronically through First Giving. This would be a way to reach out to others within and outside of our community who would like to help support our efforts. Check with the website later to see if this is up and running.
I would again reiterate the need for adoption of newly orphaned Haitian children. Information is available online to assist those who are interested in helping in this way.
In addition to the physician teams, there is a significant need for nurses of all capacities. In addition people who are able to provide logistical support at home and support at Double Harvest, for tasks such as cooking, cleaning, supply chain management, sterilization, and patient support are all encouraged to contact us for assignments.
Over the long haul we expect to assist Partners In Health in transitioning the care from an acute hospital to return to a community clinic with intermittent surgical mission work, probably over the next three months. Certainly it would be of great advantage to have the major operations maintained by Haitians who can provide continuity and speak the language.
I would stress that our mission in Haiti is a dynamic situation. People who are generously giving their time should be as flexible as possible and able to take on a variety of roles depending on what the needs are on any given trip, day, or time. The ability to work with others and to be flexible and to realize there would be some degree of uncertainty as to what would be required on any given trip is essential.
We are working with Spectrum Health to try to facilitate both supply support as well as staffing and we greatly appreciate their assistance.
Please call me if you have any questions.
Thanks again for all of your words of encouragement, support and prayers.
Best,
GJG
